During the final years of the 1980s, I was beginning a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a travel partner. Because my friend was exploring starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had arranged a fortnight visit there on the way to London.
We reached the student accommodation, a sizeable multi-story edifice on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. After dropping our bags, we went directly to the canteen, where we got some food, sat down, and engaged in conversation with other diners.
Adjacent to my seat was an Iraqi man studying engineering at Columbia University. He inquired what I did, and I shared that I had just graduated with a science degree and had been conducting research using an electron microscope.
He mentioned that there was an research lab at the university – adjacent to the engineering faculty, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He proposed that I ought to seek a position with them. I dismissed the idea, saying that I was about to fly to Europe and, even more importantly, I did not possess a US visa.
The following day I toured the city, coming back to the dining hall that evening. The Iraqi student walked over to me and let me know that he had set up a meeting for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Given that he had made the arrangement, I attended the interview – but straight off told my prospective employer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
In typical New York fashion – a place where anything feels possible – she said: “We'll handle it. When can you start?” I missed my plane to London.
I held that position for 36 months. A perk of the job was that I got free tuition at Columbia, and I seized the chance to finish a master’s of international affairs.
We didn't cross paths after that and I am unaware of his identity, but his selfless gesture changed my life in so many ways. I lacked the bravery or nerve to reach out at an prestigious college and ask for a job. Moreover, I had long dreamed to take classes in another country, but could never have afforded it without that free tuition.
Perhaps most importantly, that gig at Columbia paved the way for a job in Zurich where I met my handsome spouse from France, with whom I am raising a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.
What is the Nicest Thing a Stranger Has Shown for You?
From making your day to transforming your future, we would love to know chance encounters that have remained in your memory.
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