I eventually chose M.I.T.

The decision had something to do with education, of course, but geography mattered too.

I wanted to remain on the East Coast.

I still felt connected to Europe, and psychologically the East Coast seemed closer to everything I had left behind.

There was still a part of me looking backward across the Atlantic.

During six months of working, I managed to save $1,100.

That was a considerable amount of money because my salary had been only $360 a month before taxes.

I worked as much overtime as I could.

And I played cards.

Some habits travel very well.

In September, I came down to continue my education.

Eventually, I graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a master's degree in engineering.

Later, I earned a master's degree in business administration from Boston University.

When I left Budapest, I had been only four months away from completing my university degree and believed I might never receive one.

I could not have known that my education was not ending.

It was simply moving somewhere else.

That was true of much of my life.