In the closing decade of the 80s, I was embarking on a low-cost journey to Europe with a companion. Since my friend was exploring enrolling in graduate studies in NYC, we had planned a two-week stay there before heading to London.
We reached the student accommodation, a big ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. Once we unpacked, we went directly to the dining hall, where we grabbed food, took a seat, and began chatting with people eating there.
Beside me was an individual of Iraqi origin studying engineering at a prestigious New York university. He asked me what I did, and I shared that I had just graduated with a degree in science and had been performing experiments using an electron microscope.
He pointed out that there was an research lab at the university – close to the engineering department, which was why he was aware of it. He proposed that I ought to seek a position with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I didn’t have a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, returning to the canteen that evening. The man from Iraq came up to me and let me know 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 showed up for the discussion – but right away told my host that I didn’t have a visa, so I was unable to accept the role.
In typical New York fashion – a city where everything seems achievable – she said: “That can be arranged. What's your start date?” I never got on that flight to London.
I worked there for a trio of years. One of the benefits was that I got free tuition at Columbia, and I took advantage to complete a postgrad program in international relations.
We didn't cross paths after that and I can't recall his name, but his selfless gesture changed my life in numerous aspects. I didn't possess the confidence or nerve to approach someone at an Ivy League university and ask for a job. Additionally, I had consistently hoped to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that educational benefit.
Perhaps most importantly, that role at the university led me to a job in Zurich where I met my handsome spouse from France, with whom I currently share a family of four kids. That encounter altered everything. That helpful person changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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