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During the final years of the 1980s, I set out on a low-cost journey to the European continent with a companion. Because my travel mate was exploring pursuing a master’s degree in NYC, we had planned a 14-day stopover there on the way to London.

We arrived at the postgrad residence, a large ten-floor structure on the UWS named International House. Once we unpacked, we made our way to the canteen, where we picked up meals, found a table, 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 did for a living, and I shared that I had just graduated with a scientific background and had been working on studies using an electron microscope.

He noted that there was an electron microscope unit at the institution – adjacent to the school of engineering, which was how he knew about it. He proposed that I ought to seek a position with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was heading off to Europe and, even more importantly, I did not possess a US visa.

The following day I ventured out, returning to the canteen that after dark. The Iraqi student walked over to me and let me know that he had organized a discussion for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Since he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but immediately told my prospective employer that I was without a work permit, so I was probably wasting her time.

Reflecting the city's spirit – a city where anything feels possible – she responded: “We'll handle it. When can you start?” 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 finish a postgrad program in international relations.

I never saw that student again and I don’t even know his name, but his remarkable generosity transformed my future in so many ways. I didn't possess the courage or self-belief to approach someone at an Ivy League university and request employment. Additionally, I had long dreamed to study abroad, but could never have afforded it without that educational benefit.

What's more, that job in New York led me to a job in Zurich where I got to know my wonderful partner, with whom I am raising four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That benevolent individual redirected my path in life, and I’m forever grateful.

Can you recall the Kindest Gesture a Stranger Has Once Performed for You?

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