Cookie Thief

I think we all often judge people before we really know them. I can immediately think of two cases where I was judgemental about people before I truly knew them. One time, I judged on appearance, and the other, I formed my opinions based on rumors. Both times, I was proven wrong, and I felt pretty stupid.

The first time was at my theater camp over the summer. We were put into groups and each group had to put on a production. Our group went through some major drama. One girl in my group had this terrifying breakdown, because my counselor chose the directors of the show, and she wasn't picked. She started screaming and throwing things at everyone in the group, and when my counselor asked her to calm down, she screamed, "No! I'm sick of the popular bitches getting everything they want." My counselor tried to calm her down, but she refused to comply. After her breakdown, our group was sent outside while the camp administrators dealt her. She ended up being sent home. Anyway, while we were outside, one of the girls who had been chosen to direct started crying. The other girl comforted her and tried to calm us all down. They were very human and normal and truly nice, and I felt bad. First off, I felt terrible that they were attacked like that by this girl in our group. But I also felt guilty, because I had also judged these two girls. They were gorgeous and fashionable, and I made a faulty generalization about them. I had also thought that they were popular bitches, but after I got to know them, I realized that both were geniunely nice people.

The second time was earlier this year. I had just had a horrible fight with my best friend. She told me she wanted to take a break as friends. It came as a very abrupt shock to me, and I started crying hysterically right in the middle of the hallway. I sat down in the elevator well by the West Auditorium. As I cried, at least four people I knew walked past me, and all of them looked at me and turned away. I know that it's a difficult situation to deal with, to see someone crying. You never really know what to do. But right then, I didn't want to be left alone. I wanted to feel as though someone, anyone cared about me. That help came from someone I didn't expect at all. He has a reputation as being a promiscuous asshole, and I never really thought he was capable of any compassion. I didn't know him at all, though. But when he saw me crying, he sat down next to me and asked me what was wrong, and made me laugh through my tears. I was so grateful for his compassion, and I really learned that people are way more than just their reputations. Reputations minimize people. And while I know the guy that helped me is promiscuous, and he can be an asshole to people he doesn't like, I also know now that he is more than that.

So instead of thinking I know people because of what I've heard about them or because of my observations on their appearance, I now know that such "knowledge" is nowhere near enough.