In the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a low-cost journey to Europe with a friend. Since my travel mate was exploring starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had arranged a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a sizeable ten-floor structure on the Upper West Side called International House. After dropping our bags, we made our way to the cafeteria, where we picked up meals, sat down, and started talking to people eating there.
Sitting next to me was an individual of Iraqi origin studying engineering at a prestigious New York university. He wanted to know what I did, and I explained that I had just graduated with a scientific background and had been conducting research using an electron microscope.
He noted that there was an research lab at the institution – close to the engineering faculty, which was how he knew about it. He recommended that I ought to seek a position with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was about to fly to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
A day later I toured the city, coming back to the dining hall that after dark. The Iraqi student approached me and informed me that he had organized a discussion for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Because he had taken the effort, I attended the interview – 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 metropolis where anything feels possible – she declared: “We can make that happen. How soon can you begin?” I missed my plane to London.
I worked there for 36 months. A perk of the job was that I was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to complete a master’s of international affairs.
We didn't cross paths after that and I am unaware of his full name, but his remarkable generosity transformed my future in multiple respects. I would never have had the bravery or self-assurance to approach someone at an prestigious college and seek a position. Additionally, I had consistently hoped to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that tuition waiver.
Critically, that gig at Columbia resulted in a job in Zurich where I encountered my beautiful French husband, with whom I am raising four amazing children. It was a total sliding doors moment. That helpful person set me on a different course in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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