During the late 1980s, I was embarking on a backpacking trip to Europe with a friend. Because my companion was considering starting a postgraduate program in New York, we had arranged a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We reached the student accommodation, a big 10-storey building on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. After dropping our bags, we made our way to the cafeteria, where we picked up meals, sat down, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Beside me was an Iraqi man studying engineering at a prestigious New York university. He wanted to know what I did, and I told him that I had recently completed my studies with a degree in science and had been conducting research with electron microscopy.
He noted that there was an research lab at the university – adjacent to the engineering faculty, which was why he was aware of it. He proposed that I ought to seek a job with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was soon departing to Europe and, more critically, I did not possess a US visa.
The following day I toured the city, coming back to the dining hall that night. The engineering student came up to me and informed me that he had arranged an interview for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Given that he had made the arrangement, I attended the interview – but immediately 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 responded: “We'll handle it. What's your start date?” I never got on that flight to London.
I was employed there for three years. A perk of the job was that I got free tuition at Columbia, and I seized the chance to earn a postgrad program in international relations.
I never saw that student again and I am unaware of his full name, but his remarkable generosity changed my life in numerous aspects. I didn't possess the bravery or self-assurance to contact anyone at an Ivy League university and request employment. And, I had always wanted to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that gig at Columbia resulted in a position in Switzerland where I encountered my wonderful partner, with whom I currently share four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That helpful person set me on a different course in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
Can you recall the Kindest Gesture a Stranger Has Ever Done for You?
Whether it's making your day to altering your path, we would love to know unexpected interactions that have stuck with you.
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