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first impression

I was thinking today, about this friend I have whom I hated last year. That sounds odd doesn't it? You see, I hated this person because I had misjudged them based on how they acted around other people. Because I had misjudged this person wrongly, I denied myself a friend, and they treated me basically the same way I treated them. Now though, this person and I are becoming more aquainted and I'm finding he is actually quite interesting. I based my decision on him on his first impression.

I can't remember that saying about first impressions, that they are the most important? Something like that. Tht is kind of unfair. Some people are just too complicated, or maybe you're meeting them during something important, or on a bad day.

For example, I"m sure if you asked this guy Greg at my school he'd tell you I was a snotty bitch. If you asked aquaintances from my biology class, Sarah and Alison, I think they'd say I was nice. (I could be wrong). Ask some people and I'm funny, ask others and I"m weird. I don't know what my close friends would say, likely a mixture of good and bad qualities.

But I deserve all those different explanations, because I treat some people differently than others. Some people would argue I was mean spiritied and cynical, and some people may not believe it was me who was being discussed, just because I act differently around them.

How you treat someone is a matter of your respect for them. I don't treat my teachers (hey they're grading my papers!) as I would treat my worst enemy. Nor would I treat my adult friend as I do my baby cousin. I wouldn't treat my best friend like I do my parents (for good or bad) just because my relationship with her is hardly the same.

When I go to university, perhaps the first glimpse I see of people will create their impression in my mind, and likely the same for them. They will remember me by the name I introduce myself by, whether it be Jorden, or the more intimate Jo for my very close friends Suzan, Sam and Jonathan. They will judge me by my clothes, my voice, my appearance, my manners and my behaviour, all without getting to know what I am really like. How many people are exactly the same as they first appear? Not my friend I mentioned at the beginning, who has turned out to be quite the opposite in some aspects.

The strength of first impressions isn't really fair. I shouldn't judge others by a five second introduction, and anyone who judged me like that would not be attempting to get to know me, or discover what I am really like.

I've learned a lesson over this friend. It wasn't until we finally talked to each other about how we treated each other that I realized how badly I had judged them. I don't want to preach, but think about this, my advice is smart for a change.


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