During the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a budget travel adventure to Europe with a companion. Because my travel mate was exploring enrolling in graduate studies in New York, we had booked a two-week stay there before heading to London.
We got to the student accommodation, a big 10-storey building on the Upper West Side called International House. After dropping our bags, we made our way to the dining hall, where we picked up meals, took a seat, and engaged in conversation with fellow residents.
Adjacent to my seat was an Iraqi man studying engineering at Columbia University. He inquired what I my profession was, and I shared that I had just graduated with a scientific background and had been working on studies with electron microscopy.
He pointed out that there was an electron microscope unit at the university – close to the engineering department, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He recommended that I should apply for a position with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, saying that I was soon departing to Europe and, even more importantly, I did not possess a US visa.
The following day I toured the city, returning to the canteen that after dark. The engineering student walked over to me and told me that he had organized a discussion for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Because he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but right away told my host that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a city where opportunities abound – she said: “That can be arranged. How soon can you begin?” I never got on that flight to London.
I was employed there for 36 months. An advantage of the role was that I was granted no-cost classes at Columbia, and I took advantage to earn a graduate degree in global studies.
I lost touch with him and I can't recall his full name, but his remarkable generosity changed my life in numerous aspects. I would never have had the courage or nerve to approach someone at an elite institution and seek a position. Additionally, I had long dreamed to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that free tuition.
What's more, that role at the university resulted in a position in Switzerland where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I currently share a family of four kids. It was a total sliding doors moment. That helpful person changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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