During the final years of the 1980s, I was beginning a low-cost journey to Europe with a friend. Since my friend was exploring enrolling in graduate studies in the Big Apple, we had booked a fortnight visit there en route to London.
We arrived at the student accommodation, a sizeable ten-floor structure on the Upper West Side known as International House. Setting down our luggage, we headed straight to the cafeteria, where we grabbed food, sat down, and started talking to people eating there.
Sitting next to me was an Iraqi man pursuing an engineering degree at a prestigious New York university. He inquired what I did for a living, and I shared that I had just graduated with a degree in science and had been conducting research involving microscopic analysis.
He pointed out that there was an electron microscope unit at the university – close to the school of engineering, which was how he knew about it. He suggested that I should apply for a role with them. I dismissed the idea, explaining that I was heading off to Europe and, even more importantly, I didn’t have a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, going back to the cafeteria that after dark. 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. Since he had made the arrangement, I showed up for the discussion – but straight off told my prospective employer that I was without a work permit, so I was unable to accept the role.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a metropolis where anything feels possible – she responded: “That can be arranged. How soon can you begin?” I never got on that flight to London.
I held that position for 36 months. An advantage of the role was that I got complimentary education at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to complete a postgrad program in international relations.
I lost touch with him and I don’t even know his name, but his selfless gesture changed my life in numerous aspects. I lacked the courage or self-assurance to reach out at an Ivy League university and ask for a job. And, I had consistently hoped to take classes in another country, but lacked the financial means without that tuition waiver.
Critically, that job in New York led me to a role in Europe where I encountered my beautiful French husband, with whom I now have four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That helpful person redirected my path in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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