In the late 1980s, I set out on a low-cost journey to the European continent with a companion. Because my travel mate was interested in enrolling in graduate studies in NYC, we had arranged a 14-day stopover there before heading to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a large 10-storey building on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. After dropping our bags, we went directly to the canteen, where we got some food, sat down, and started talking to people eating there.
Adjacent to my seat was an individual of Iraqi origin pursuing an engineering degree at Columbia University. He wanted to know what I did for a living, and I told him that I had just graduated with a degree in science and had been conducting research with electron microscopy.
He noted that there was an research lab at the university – right next door to the engineering faculty, which was how he knew about it. He recommended that I ought to seek a role with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, explaining that I was heading off to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, returning to the canteen that evening. The Iraqi student approached me and told me that he had arranged an interview for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Given that he had taken the effort, I showed up for the discussion – but straight off informed my host that I lacked the necessary 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. How soon can you begin?” I never got on that flight to London.
I worked there for 36 months. One of the benefits was that I got no-cost classes at Columbia, and I seized the chance to complete a postgrad program in international relations.
I lost touch with him and I don’t even know his full name, but his selfless gesture changed my life in multiple respects. I would never have had the bravery or nerve to contact anyone at an prestigious college and request employment. Additionally, I had always wanted to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that educational benefit.
Perhaps most importantly, that role at the university led me to a role in Europe where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I currently share four amazing children. This was a pivotal life event. That helpful person changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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