In the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a backpacking trip to Europe with a friend. Because my friend was considering pursuing a master’s degree in New York, we had booked a 14-day stopover there on the way to London.
We arrived at the graduate housing, a large multi-story edifice on the Upper West Side known as International House. Setting down our luggage, we went directly to the canteen, where we got some food, sat down, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Adjacent to my seat was an gentleman from Iraq studying engineering at an Ivy League institution. He asked me what I did for a living, and I shared that I had newly finished with a science degree and had been performing experiments using an electron microscope.
He mentioned that there was an research lab at Columbia University – close to the engineering department, which was why he was aware of it. He suggested that I ought to seek a job with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, telling him that I was heading off to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I ventured out, going back to the cafeteria that after dark. The engineering student came up to me and told me that he had organized a discussion for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had taken the effort, I attended the interview – but right away informed my prospective employer that I was without a work permit, so I was unable to accept the role.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a metropolis where everything seems achievable – she responded: “We can make that happen. What's your start date?” I missed my plane to London.
I held that position for 36 months. An advantage of the role was that I was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to earn a postgrad program in international relations.
I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his name, but his incredible act of kindness transformed my future in multiple respects. I didn't possess the courage or nerve to approach someone at an elite institution and seek a position. Moreover, I had long dreamed to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that free tuition.
Perhaps most importantly, that role at the university paved the way for a role in Europe where I got to know my beautiful French husband, with whom I currently share a family of four kids. This was a pivotal life event. That kind stranger redirected my path in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
Can you recall the Nicest Thing a Stranger Has Shown for You?
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