In the closing decade of the 80s, I set out on a low-cost journey to the European continent with a travel partner. Because my companion was considering enrolling in graduate studies in New York, we had booked a 14-day stopover there en route to London.
We arrived at the student accommodation, a large multi-story edifice on the UWS named International House. After dropping our bags, we made our way to the dining hall, where we grabbed food, sat down, and started talking to people eating there.
Sitting next to me was an individual of Iraqi origin studying engineering at an Ivy League institution. He wanted to know what I my profession was, and I told him that I had just graduated with a degree in science and had been conducting research using an electron microscope.
He noted that there was an research lab at the institution – adjacent to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He proposed that I ought to seek a role with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, explaining that I was heading off to Europe and, even more importantly, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, going back to the cafeteria that after dark. The Iraqi student came up to me and informed me that he had set up a meeting for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had made the arrangement, I attended the interview – but right away informed my host that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a city where everything seems achievable – she said: “We'll handle it. When can you start?” I never got on that flight to London.
I worked there for three years. A perk of the job was that I got no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to finish a postgrad program in international relations.
We didn't cross paths after that and I am unaware of his name, but his incredible act of kindness altered my destiny in multiple respects. I lacked the confidence or self-belief to contact anyone at an Ivy League university and request employment. And, I had consistently hoped to take classes in another country, but lacked the financial means without that educational benefit.
What's more, that role at the university resulted in a role in Europe where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I am raising a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That helpful person set me on a different course in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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