During the final years of the 1980s, I was beginning a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a companion. Since my companion was exploring enrolling in graduate studies in NYC, we had arranged a fortnight visit there on the way to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a big 10-storey building on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. After dropping our bags, we headed straight to the dining hall, where we picked up meals, found a table, and started talking to other diners.
Beside me was an Iraqi man studying engineering at Columbia University. He wanted to know what I my profession was, and I explained that I had recently completed my studies with a degree in science and had been working on studies involving microscopic analysis.
He pointed out that there was an electron microscope unit at the university – right next door to the engineering faculty, which was why he was aware of it. He suggested that I ought to seek a job with them. I dismissed the idea, explaining that I was about to fly to Europe and, even more importantly, I did not possess a US visa.
The next day I went out exploring, going back to the cafeteria that night. The engineering student approached me and told me that he had arranged an interview for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Because he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but right away informed my host that I was without a work permit, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
In typical New York fashion – a city where opportunities abound – she said: “That can be arranged. How soon can you begin?” I missed my plane to London.
I was employed there for a trio of years. A perk of the job was that I also received complimentary education at Columbia, and I seized the chance to earn a graduate degree in global studies.
We didn't cross paths after that and I can't recall his name, but his remarkable generosity changed my life in multiple respects. I would never have had the bravery or nerve to approach someone at an Ivy League university and ask for a job. Additionally, I had always wanted to pursue education overseas, but lacked the financial means without that educational benefit.
Perhaps most importantly, that gig at Columbia paved the way for a position in Switzerland where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I now have a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That helpful person redirected my path in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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