During the late 1980s, I set out on a budget travel adventure to Europe with a friend. Because my friend was considering pursuing a master’s degree in NYC, we had booked a fortnight visit there before heading to London.
We arrived at the graduate housing, a large multi-story edifice on the Upper West Side called International House. Once we unpacked, we made our way to the dining hall, where we got some food, sat down, and started talking to people eating there.
Beside me was an individual of Iraqi origin studying engineering at Columbia University. He wanted to know what I did, and I explained that I had recently completed my studies with a science degree and had been working on studies involving microscopic analysis.
He noted that there was an microscopy facility at the institution – right next door to the engineering faculty, which was how he knew about it. He proposed that I should apply for a job with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was heading off to Europe and, even more importantly, I didn’t have a US visa.
A day later I ventured out, coming back to the dining hall that night. The man from Iraq came up to me and told me that he had arranged an interview for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Since he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but straight off informed my interviewer that I was without a work permit, so I was unable to accept the role.
In typical New York fashion – a city 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 got no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to earn a postgrad program in international relations.
I never saw that student again and I am unaware of his name, but his incredible act of kindness altered my destiny in so many ways. I would never have had the courage or self-belief to contact anyone at an elite institution and ask for a job. And, I had long dreamed to take classes in another country, but could never have afforded it without that free tuition.
Perhaps most importantly, that role at the university paved the way for a role in Europe where I encountered my beautiful French husband, with whom I now have four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger changed my trajectory in life, and I’m always appreciative.
Can you recall the Nicest Thing a Stranger Has Once Performed for You?
From brightening your mood to altering your path, we would love to know random meetings that have remained in your memory.
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