During the late 1980s, I was beginning a low-cost journey to the European continent with a friend. Since my friend was considering enrolling in graduate studies in the Big Apple, we had planned a fortnight visit there en route to London.
We got to the postgrad residence, a big ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. After dropping our bags, we headed straight to the canteen, where we got some food, took a seat, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Beside 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 science degree and had been conducting research with electron microscopy.
He noted that there was an microscopy facility at Columbia University – right next door to the engineering faculty, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He proposed that I consider applying for a role with them. I dismissed the idea, saying that I was about to fly to Europe and, even more importantly, I did not possess a US visa.
The following day I went out exploring, returning to the canteen that evening. The Iraqi student approached me and told me that he had organized a discussion for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Because he had made the arrangement, I went to the meeting – but immediately explained to my host that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a place where opportunities abound – she declared: “That can be arranged. When can you start?” I missed my plane to London.
I was employed there for three years. One of the benefits was that I got no-cost classes at Columbia, and I took advantage to finish a graduate degree in global studies.
I lost touch with him and I am unaware of his full name, but his remarkable generosity altered my destiny in multiple respects. I would never have had the confidence or self-belief to reach out at an elite institution and ask for a job. And, I had always wanted to pursue education overseas, but could never have afforded it without that free tuition.
What's more, that job in New York led me to a job in Zurich where I encountered my beautiful French husband, with whom I currently share four amazing children. It was a total sliding doors moment. That benevolent individual changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.
Can you recall the Most Generous Act a Stranger Has Ever Done for You?
From cheering you up to altering your path, we would love to know chance encounters that have remained in your memory.
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