In the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a backpacking trip to Europe with a travel partner. Since my companion was interested in starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had planned a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a big 10-storey building on the Upper West Side known as International House. Once we unpacked, we made our way to the canteen, where we got some food, took a seat, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Beside me was an individual of Iraqi origin enrolled in an engineering program at Columbia University. He asked me what I my profession was, and I told him that I had just graduated with a scientific background and had been performing experiments with electron microscopy.
He noted that there was an microscopy facility at the institution – right next door to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He suggested that I ought to seek a role with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, saying that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I didn’t have a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, coming back to the dining hall that night. The engineering student came up to me and let me know that he had organized a discussion for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Given that he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but right away told my interviewer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was unable to accept the role.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a metropolis where everything seems achievable – she declared: “We'll handle it. What's your start date?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I held that position for a trio of years. An advantage of the role was that I also received 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 identity, but his remarkable generosity changed my life in multiple respects. I would never have had the bravery or self-assurance to approach someone at an elite institution and seek a position. Moreover, I had always wanted to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that educational benefit.
What's more, that gig at Columbia resulted in a job in Zurich where I encountered my beautiful French husband, with whom I am raising four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That helpful person redirected my path in life, and I’m forever grateful.
Can you recall the Most Generous Act a Unknown Person Has Once Performed for You?
From brightening your mood to altering your path, we would love to know unexpected interactions that have stuck with you.
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