During the closing decade of the 80s, I set out on a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a travel partner. Because my companion was exploring pursuing a master’s degree in NYC, we had booked a two-week stay there before heading to London.
We arrived at the graduate housing, a large multi-story edifice on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. Once we unpacked, we went directly to the dining hall, where we picked up meals, took a seat, and engaged in conversation with other diners.
Sitting next to me was an Iraqi man enrolled in an engineering program at a prestigious New York university. He asked me what I did for a living, and I explained that I had just graduated with a scientific background and had been conducting research involving microscopic analysis.
He pointed out that there was an electron microscope unit at Columbia University – close to the engineering faculty, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He suggested that I consider applying for a job with them. I dismissed the idea, saying that I was about to fly to Europe and, more critically, I did not possess a US visa.
A day later I went out exploring, returning to the canteen that night. The engineering student approached me and told me that he had organized a discussion for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had gone to the trouble, I went to the meeting – but straight off explained to my host that I was without a work permit, so I was unable to accept the role.
In typical New York fashion – a place where anything feels possible – she declared: “That can be arranged. How soon can you begin?” I never got on that flight to London.
I was employed there for 36 months. One of the benefits was that I got complimentary education at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to earn a graduate degree in global studies.
We didn't cross paths after that and I am unaware of his identity, but his remarkable generosity transformed my future in multiple respects. I lacked the bravery or nerve to reach out at an Ivy League university and seek a position. And, I had always wanted to take classes in another country, but lacked the financial means without that educational benefit.
What's more, that role at the university paved the way for a role in Europe where I encountered my handsome spouse from France, with whom I am raising four wonderful sons and daughters. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger changed my trajectory in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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