In the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a backpacking trip to Europe with a friend. Because my friend was interested in enrolling in graduate studies in NYC, we had arranged a two-week stay there en route to London.
We arrived at the student accommodation, a sizeable ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. Setting down our luggage, we went directly to the cafeteria, where we got some food, found a table, and engaged in conversation with fellow residents.
Beside me was an Iraqi man enrolled in an engineering program at an Ivy League institution. He wanted to know what I did, and I told him that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been conducting research using an electron microscope.
He mentioned that there was an electron microscope unit at the university – adjacent to the school of engineering, which was how he knew about it. He recommended that I ought to seek a job with them. I dismissed the idea, saying that I was soon departing to Europe and, even more importantly, I didn’t have a US visa.
The following day I ventured out, going back to the cafeteria that night. The engineering student walked over to me and told me that he had arranged an interview for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Since he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but immediately explained to my interviewer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
As is common in NYC – a city where anything feels possible – she declared: “That can be arranged. How soon can you begin?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I was employed there for three years. A perk of the job was that I was granted no-cost classes at Columbia, and I took advantage to complete a postgrad program in international relations.
I never saw that student again and I can't recall his identity, but his incredible act of kindness altered my destiny in so many ways. I would never have had the confidence or nerve to reach out at an prestigious college and ask for a job. And, I had consistently hoped to take classes in another country, but could never have afforded it without that educational benefit.
Critically, that gig at Columbia resulted in a job in Zurich where I met my wonderful partner, with whom I now have a family of four kids. This was a pivotal life event. That helpful person set me on a different course in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
Tell us about the Kindest Gesture a Stranger Has Once Performed for You?
From cheering you up to altering your path, we are interested in chance encounters that have left a lasting impression.
Please share your story if you are an adult, without revealing your identity if you choose. The stories you tell are confidential, and are solely for the purpose of this feature.
