In the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a backpacking trip to Europe with a friend. Since my travel mate was considering pursuing a master’s degree in NYC, we had planned a fortnight visit there on the way to London.
We got to the graduate housing, a big multi-story edifice on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. After dropping our bags, we made our way to the canteen, where we grabbed food, took a seat, and engaged in conversation with fellow residents.
Adjacent to my seat was an gentleman from Iraq 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 working on studies using an electron microscope.
He pointed out that there was an research lab at Columbia University – right next door to the school of engineering, which was how he knew about it. He recommended that I ought to seek a position with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, saying that I was about to fly to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
The following day I ventured out, returning to the canteen that night. The engineering student came up to me and informed 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 went to the meeting – but straight off explained to my interviewer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a city where everything seems achievable – she declared: “We'll handle it. What's your start date?” I missed my plane to London.
I was employed there for a trio of years. A perk of the job was that I got free tuition at Columbia, and I seized the chance to finish a master’s of international affairs.
I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his full name, but his selfless gesture transformed my future in multiple respects. I lacked the confidence or nerve to contact anyone at an Ivy League university and seek a position. Additionally, I had long dreamed to study abroad, but lacked the financial means without that tuition waiver.
Critically, that job in New York led me to a job in Zurich where I encountered my wonderful partner, with whom I am raising four amazing children. This was a pivotal life event. That helpful person changed my trajectory in life, and I’m forever grateful.
Can you recall the Kindest Gesture a Stranger Has Once Performed for You?
Whether it's cheering you up to altering your path, we are interested in random meetings that have stuck with you.
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