In the closing decade of the 80s, I set out on a backpacking trip to the European continent with a friend. Since my travel mate was exploring starting a postgraduate program in the Big Apple, we had planned a two-week stay there before heading to London.
We reached the graduate housing, a big 10-storey building on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. Setting down our luggage, we went directly to the canteen, where we picked up meals, found a table, and started talking to people eating there.
Sitting next to me was an individual of Iraqi origin studying engineering at Columbia University. He inquired what I did, and I shared that I had newly finished with a degree in science and had been working on studies using an electron microscope.
He pointed out that there was an electron microscope unit at Columbia University – close to the engineering faculty, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He suggested that I should apply for a position with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, saying that I was about to fly to Europe and, additionally, I didn’t have a US visa.
A day later I ventured out, returning to the canteen that after dark. The engineering student walked over to me and told me that he had organized a discussion for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had taken the effort, I went to the meeting – but immediately told my prospective employer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a city where opportunities abound – she said: “That can be arranged. What's your start date?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I worked there for 36 months. A perk of the job was that I was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I seized the chance to finish a master’s of international affairs.
I never saw that student again and I am unaware of his name, but his remarkable generosity changed my life in so many ways. I didn't possess the confidence or self-belief to reach out at an Ivy League university and seek a position. Additionally, I had always wanted to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that tuition waiver.
Perhaps most importantly, that gig at Columbia resulted in a role in Europe where I met my handsome spouse from France, with whom I am raising four wonderful sons and daughters. It was a total sliding doors moment. That helpful person redirected my path in life, and I’m forever grateful.
From brightening your mood to changing your life, we are interested in random meetings that have left a lasting impression.
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Eva de Vries is a passionate book lover and local writer from Eindhoven.
