During the closing decade of the 80s, I set out on a low-cost journey to Europe with a friend. Because my friend was exploring enrolling in graduate studies in New York, we had arranged a 14-day stopover there on the way to London.
We got to the postgrad residence, a sizeable multi-story edifice on the UWS known as International House. Setting down our luggage, we made our way to the dining hall, where we picked up meals, sat down, and engaged in conversation with fellow residents.
Sitting next to me was an gentleman from Iraq pursuing an engineering degree at an Ivy League institution. He wanted to know what I did for a living, and I shared that I had newly finished with a scientific background and had been conducting research with electron microscopy.
He noted that there was an microscopy facility at Columbia University – adjacent to the engineering faculty, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He suggested that I should apply for a job with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, saying that I was heading off to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
A day later I toured the city, going back to the cafeteria that after dark. The Iraqi student approached me and told 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 showed up for the discussion – but right away explained to my prospective employer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a city where everything seems achievable – she responded: “We'll handle it. When can you start?” I never got on that flight to London.
I worked there for a trio of years. A perk of the job was that I also received free tuition at Columbia, and I seized the chance to complete a graduate degree in global studies.
We didn't cross paths after that and I can't recall his full name, but his incredible act of kindness altered my destiny in so many ways. I lacked the bravery or nerve to approach someone at an Ivy League university and ask for a job. And, I had always wanted to take classes in another country, but could never have afforded it without that free tuition.
Critically, that gig at Columbia resulted in a job in Zurich where I met my beautiful French husband, with whom I am raising four amazing children. It was a total sliding doors moment. That kind stranger changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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