🔗 Share this article

During the final years of the 1980s, I was beginning a budget travel adventure to Europe with a friend. Since my friend was exploring starting a postgraduate program in New York, we had arranged a two-week stay there on the way to London.

We reached the graduate housing, a sizeable 10-storey building on the Manhattan's Upper West Side named International House. Once we unpacked, we went directly to the canteen, where we got some food, sat down, and began chatting with fellow residents.

Sitting next to me was an individual of Iraqi origin studying engineering at a prestigious New York university. He wanted to know what I did, and I explained that I had newly finished with a degree in science and had been conducting research involving microscopic analysis.

He mentioned that there was an research lab at the university – close to the school of engineering, which was how he knew about it. He suggested that I ought to seek a position with them. I dismissed the idea, explaining that I was about to fly to Europe and, more critically, I didn’t have a US visa.

The next day I toured the city, coming back to the dining hall that night. The man from Iraq walked over to me and informed me that he had set up a meeting for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had taken the effort, I showed up for the discussion – but right away told my host that I was without a work permit, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.

In typical New York fashion – a metropolis where anything feels possible – she declared: “That can be arranged. What's your start date?” I never got on that flight to London.

I worked there for three years. An advantage of the role was that I got free tuition at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to complete a master’s of international affairs.

We didn't cross paths after that and I can't recall his full name, but his incredible act of kindness altered my destiny in numerous aspects. I would never have had the courage or nerve to reach out at an Ivy League university and ask for a job. Additionally, I had always wanted to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that free tuition.

Critically, that job in New York paved the way for a job in Zurich where I encountered my beautiful French husband, with whom I now have four wonderful sons and daughters. This was a pivotal life event. That benevolent individual changed my trajectory in life, and I’m always appreciative.

Can you recall the Kindest Gesture a Someone You Didn't Know Has Once Performed for You?

Whether it's cheering you up to changing your life, we would love to know random meetings that have left a lasting impression.

Feel free to recount your experience if you are of legal age, keeping your details private if you choose. Your responses are confidential, and are intended for the purpose of this feature.