During the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a budget travel adventure to Europe with a friend. Because my companion was considering enrolling in graduate studies in the Big Apple, we had booked a 14-day stopover there en route to London.
We arrived at the student accommodation, a large ten-floor structure on the UWS known as International House. After dropping our bags, we headed straight to the dining hall, where we picked up meals, sat down, and began chatting with other diners.
Beside me was an Iraqi man pursuing an engineering degree at Columbia University. He wanted to know what I my profession was, and I shared that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been working on studies with electron microscopy.
He mentioned that there was an research lab at Columbia University – adjacent to the engineering department, which was how he knew about it. He recommended that I should apply for a position with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I lacked a US visa.
A day later I toured the city, going back to the cafeteria that night. The man from Iraq came up to me and told me that he had set up a meeting for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Given that he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but straight off told my prospective employer that I was without a work permit, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a city where everything seems achievable – she declared: “We can make that happen. When can you start?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I held that position for three years. A perk of the job was that I also received free tuition at Columbia, and I took advantage to complete a master’s of international affairs.
I lost touch with him and I don’t even know his name, but his selfless gesture changed my life in numerous aspects. I would never have had the bravery or self-belief to contact anyone at an elite institution and ask for a job. Moreover, I had consistently hoped to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that educational benefit.
Perhaps most importantly, that job in New York resulted in a role in Europe where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I currently share four amazing children. This was a pivotal life event. That kind stranger redirected my path in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
Can you recall the Nicest Thing a Someone You Didn't Know Has Shown for You?
Whether it's cheering you up to altering your path, we are interested in unexpected interactions that have remained in your memory.
We invite you to tell us if you are of legal age, without revealing your identity if you choose. The stories you tell are confidential, and are intended for the aim of this article.
