In the closing decade of the 80s, I set out on a backpacking trip to the European continent with a friend. Since my friend was exploring starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had planned a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We reached the postgrad residence, a large multi-story edifice on the Upper West Side called International House. Once we unpacked, we headed straight to the cafeteria, where we grabbed food, took a seat, and engaged in conversation with fellow residents.
Sitting next to me was an Iraqi man enrolled in an engineering program at an Ivy League institution. He asked me what I did for a living, and I told him that I had recently completed my studies with a scientific background and had been working on studies using an electron microscope.
He pointed out that there was an electron microscope unit at Columbia University – adjacent to the engineering faculty, which was why he was aware of it. He suggested that I ought to seek a job with them. I dismissed the idea, explaining that I was heading off to Europe and, additionally, I did not possess a US visa.
A day later I ventured out, returning to the canteen that night. The Iraqi student approached me and told me that he had organized a discussion for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Since he had taken the effort, 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 place where everything seems achievable – she declared: “We can make that happen. What's your start date?” I missed my plane to London.
I was employed there for 36 months. One of the benefits was that I was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I seized the chance to complete a graduate degree in global studies.
We didn't cross paths after that and I don’t even know his name, but his selfless gesture altered my destiny in so many ways. I would never have had the courage or self-belief to approach someone at an prestigious college and ask for a job. Additionally, I had long dreamed to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that educational benefit.
What's more, that role at the university paved the way for a job in Zurich where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I now have four wonderful sons and daughters. That encounter altered everything. That helpful person changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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