During the closing decade of the 80s, I set out on a backpacking trip to Europe with a companion. Because my companion was exploring enrolling in graduate studies in New York, we had planned a two-week stay there en route to London.
We arrived at the student accommodation, a big multi-story edifice on the Manhattan's Upper West Side named International House. Once we unpacked, we went directly to the canteen, where we grabbed food, found a table, and began chatting with fellow residents.
Sitting next to me was an gentleman from Iraq enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He asked me what I did for a living, and I told him that I had just graduated with a degree in science and had been performing experiments with electron microscopy.
He pointed out that there was an research lab at the university – right next door to the engineering faculty, which was why he was aware of it. He proposed that I consider applying for a role with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, telling him that I was heading off to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
The following day I toured the city, coming back to the dining hall that night. The engineering student approached me and told me that he had set up a meeting for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Since he had taken the effort, I went to the meeting – but right away 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 city where opportunities abound – she said: “We'll handle it. When can you start?” I never got on that flight to London.
I worked there for 36 months. An advantage of the role was that I was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to complete a postgrad program in international relations.
I never saw that student again and I am unaware of his name, but his selfless gesture changed my life in so many ways. I would never have had the confidence or nerve to reach out at an Ivy League university and ask for a job. Additionally, I had consistently hoped to take classes in another country, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that tuition waiver.
What's more, that role at the university paved the way for a job in Zurich where I got to know my beautiful French husband, with whom I currently share four wonderful sons and daughters. It was a total sliding doors moment. That benevolent individual set me on a different course in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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