During the closing decade of the 80s, I was embarking on a low-cost journey to Europe with a friend. Because my travel mate was interested in enrolling in graduate studies in the Big Apple, we had booked a two-week stay there before heading to London.
We arrived at the student accommodation, a big multi-story edifice on the UWS named International House. Once we unpacked, we made our way to the dining hall, where we got some food, took a seat, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Adjacent to my seat was an Iraqi man enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He wanted to know what I my profession was, and I shared that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been conducting research involving microscopic analysis.
He noted that there was an microscopy facility at the institution – right next door to the school of engineering, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He suggested that I ought to seek a position with them. I laughed it off, saying that I was about to fly to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, returning to the canteen that evening. The engineering student approached me and told me that he had set up a meeting for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Because he had made the arrangement, I went to the meeting – but right away informed my interviewer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a city where opportunities abound – she responded: “We can make that happen. What's your start date?” I never got on that flight to London.
I worked there for a trio of years. One of the benefits was that I was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to finish a master’s of international affairs.
We didn't cross paths after that and I don’t even know his identity, but his incredible act of kindness altered my destiny in so many ways. I didn't possess the courage or self-assurance to approach someone at an elite institution and request employment. Additionally, I had long dreamed to pursue education overseas, but lacked the financial means without that tuition waiver.
What's more, that role at the university resulted in a role in Europe where I encountered my handsome spouse from France, with whom I currently share four wonderful sons and daughters. It was a total sliding doors moment. That helpful person set me on a different course in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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