During the closing decade of the 80s, I set out on a backpacking trip to the European continent with a friend. Since my travel mate was exploring starting a postgraduate program in New York, we had booked a two-week stay there en route to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a big 10-storey building on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. Setting down our luggage, we headed straight to the cafeteria, where we grabbed food, sat down, and started talking to people eating there.
Adjacent to my seat was an Iraqi man pursuing an engineering degree at a prestigious New York university. He inquired what I my profession was, and I explained that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been performing experiments with electron microscopy.
He pointed out that there was an electron microscope unit at the university – adjacent to the school of engineering, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He suggested that I ought to seek a job with them. I dismissed the idea, telling him that I was about to fly to Europe and, even more importantly, I didn’t have a US visa.
The following day I went out exploring, returning to the canteen that after dark. The man from Iraq came up to me and informed me that he had organized a discussion for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had taken the effort, I showed up for the discussion – but right away explained to my interviewer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a metropolis where opportunities abound – she responded: “We can make that happen. When can you start?” I never got on that flight to London.
I held that position for a trio of years. A perk of the job was that I got complimentary education at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to finish a graduate degree in global studies.
I lost touch with him and I don’t even know his full name, but his selfless gesture transformed my future in numerous aspects. I didn't possess the confidence or nerve to contact anyone at an prestigious college and request employment. Moreover, I had always wanted to study abroad, but lacked the financial means without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that gig at Columbia paved the way for a job in Zurich where I encountered my wonderful partner, with whom I currently share a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger set me on a different course in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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