In the closing decade of the 80s, I was beginning a backpacking trip to Europe with a companion. Because my companion was interested in starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had booked a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We arrived at the graduate housing, a large ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. Once we unpacked, we made our way to the canteen, where we grabbed food, found a table, and started talking to other diners.
Sitting next to me was an Iraqi man enrolled in an engineering program at an Ivy League institution. He asked me what I my profession was, and I told him that I had just graduated with a degree in science and had been conducting research involving microscopic analysis.
He pointed out that there was an electron microscope unit at the university – adjacent to the engineering faculty, which was how he knew about it. He proposed that I consider applying for a position with them. I laughed it off, telling him that I was soon departing to Europe and, additionally, I didn’t have a US visa.
The next day I ventured out, going back to the cafeteria that after dark. The man from Iraq came up to me and told me that he had set up a meeting for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Because he had taken the effort, I showed up for the discussion – but right away informed my host that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a city where anything feels possible – she responded: “We'll handle it. What's your start date?” I missed my plane to London.
I was employed there for three years. A perk of the job was that I also received free tuition at Columbia, and I seized the chance to earn a master’s of international affairs.
I lost touch with him and I am unaware of his full name, but his remarkable generosity altered my destiny in multiple respects. I didn't possess the confidence or nerve to contact anyone at an Ivy League university and ask for a job. Moreover, I had long dreamed to take classes in another country, but could never have afforded it without that free tuition.
What's more, that job in New York led me to a role in Europe where I encountered my wonderful partner, with whom I now have four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That helpful person changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.
Can you recall the Kindest Gesture a Unknown Person Has Shown for You?
From cheering you up to altering your path, we would love to know chance encounters that have left a lasting impression.
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