“After one month, I arrived in Austria. The first day I was there, I walked into a bakery and met a man named Fritz Hummel. He told me that forty years ago he had visited Syria and he’d been treated well. So he gave me clothes, food, everything. He became like a father to me. He took me to the Rotary Club and introduced me to the entire group. He told them my story and asked: ‘How can we help him?’ I found a church, and they gave me a place to live. Right away I committed myself to learning the language. I practiced German for 17 hours a day. I read children’s stories all day long. I watched television. I tried to meet as many Austrians as possible. After seven months, it was time to meet with a judge to determine my status. I could speak so well at this point, that I asked the judge if we could conduct the interview in German. He couldn’t believe it. He was so impressed that I’d already learned German, that he interviewed me for only ten minutes. Then he pointed at my Syrian ID card and said: ‘Muhammad, you will never need this again. You are now an Austrian!’” (Kos, Greece)

I selected this post because of Muhammad’s story. It reminded  me that there are still people who are willing to help those in need without expecting anything in return. Also, Muhammad worked really hard to create a new life for himself in Austria. He was in a new place, where he didn’t anyone and didn’t speak the language. I think that this is something that many people in New York can relate to. Many of us are not originally from here and we or have parents and grandparents who have faced some of the same issues that Muhammad faced.