During the late 1980s, I was embarking on a low-cost journey to Europe with a companion. Because my travel mate was interested in starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had booked a two-week stay there en route to London.
We reached the postgrad residence, a large ten-floor structure on the Upper West Side known as International House. Setting down our luggage, we made our way to the dining hall, where we picked up meals, found a table, and began chatting with fellow residents.
Sitting next to me was an gentleman from Iraq studying engineering at Columbia University. He asked me what I my profession was, and I told him that I had just graduated with a scientific background and had been performing experiments involving microscopic analysis.
He mentioned that there was an electron microscope unit at Columbia University – right next door to the school of engineering, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He suggested that I consider applying for a position with them. I laughed it off, saying that I was soon departing to Europe and, even more importantly, I did not possess a US visa.
The following day I ventured out, coming back to the dining hall that after dark. The man from Iraq walked over to 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 attended the interview – but right away informed my prospective employer that I was without a work permit, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
In typical New York fashion – a place where everything seems achievable – she said: “We'll handle it. How soon can you begin?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I held that position for 36 months. A perk of the job was that I got free tuition at Columbia, and I seized the chance to finish a postgrad program in international relations.
We didn't cross paths after that and I can't recall his identity, but his remarkable generosity altered my destiny in numerous aspects. I didn't possess the courage or self-belief to reach out at an prestigious college and seek a position. Moreover, I had long dreamed to take classes in another country, but lacked the financial means without that educational benefit.
Perhaps most importantly, that job in New York resulted in a role in Europe where I met my beautiful French husband, with whom I currently share a family of four kids. It was a total sliding doors moment. That benevolent individual redirected my path in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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