During the closing decade of the 80s, I was embarking on a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a friend. Since my companion was interested in pursuing a master’s degree in New York, we had planned a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We got to the postgrad residence, a large multi-story edifice on the Upper West Side known as International House. Once we unpacked, we made our way to the dining hall, where we got some food, sat down, and started talking to other diners.
Beside me was an Iraqi man studying engineering at an Ivy League institution. He inquired what I did, and I shared that I had just graduated with a degree in science and had been conducting research involving microscopic analysis.
He pointed out that there was an microscopy facility at Columbia University – adjacent to the school of engineering, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He proposed that I consider applying for a position with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I didn’t have a US visa.
A day later I ventured out, coming back to the dining hall that evening. The engineering student approached me and let me know that he had set up a meeting for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Since he had taken the effort, I attended the interview – but right away informed my prospective employer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a place where opportunities abound – she responded: “That can be arranged. How soon can you begin?” I missed my plane to London.
I was employed there for 36 months. An advantage of the role was that I got 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 numerous aspects. I would never have had the confidence or self-belief to reach out at an elite institution and ask for a job. Additionally, I had long dreamed to pursue education overseas, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that tuition waiver.
What's more, that gig at Columbia led me to a position in Switzerland where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I am raising four wonderful sons and daughters. This was a pivotal life event. That benevolent individual changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
Can you recall the Kindest Gesture a Stranger Has Shown for You?
Whether it's making your day to altering your path, we are interested in unexpected interactions that have stuck with you.
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