In the closing decade of the 80s, I set out on a low-cost journey to the European continent with a companion. Since my friend was considering starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had arranged a 14-day stopover there en route to London.
We reached the student accommodation, a sizeable ten-floor structure on the Manhattan's Upper West Side named International House. Setting down our luggage, we made our way to the canteen, where we got some food, sat down, and began chatting with fellow residents.
Sitting next to me was an gentleman from Iraq studying engineering at Columbia University. He asked me what I did, and I told him that I had just graduated with a scientific background and had been working on studies involving microscopic analysis.
He pointed out that there was an research lab at the institution – right next door to the engineering department, which was why he was aware of it. He proposed that I should apply for a role with them. I laughed it off, saying that I was soon departing to Europe and, additionally, I lacked a US visa.
The following day I went out exploring, going back to the cafeteria that night. The engineering student approached me and told me that he had set up a meeting for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Given that he had taken the effort, I attended the interview – but straight off informed my interviewer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
As is common in NYC – a city where everything seems achievable – she said: “That can be arranged. What's your start date?” I never got on that flight to London.
I worked there for 36 months. A perk of the job was that I also received 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 transformed my future in so many ways. I would never have had the courage or nerve to approach someone at an elite institution and ask for a job. And, I had consistently hoped to take classes in another country, but lacked the financial means without that free tuition.
Perhaps most importantly, that gig at Columbia led me to a role in Europe where I met my handsome spouse from France, with whom I currently share four wonderful sons and daughters. It was a total sliding doors moment. That kind stranger set me on a different course in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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 unexpected interactions that have remained in your memory.
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