Don't Judge a Book

Sometimes it is hard for us to hear the message someone is trying to give us. Our perception or judgments about the speaker may cause us to assume things that aren't true. For example, a couple of years ago, I had a lead custodian working at our elementary school. Where I work, education is valued so much that when someone without an advanced degree presents an opinion, it is sometimes discounted or ignored by some. It was this case when some people heard what the lead custodian had to say. As his point of contact with the school, I became friends with the custodian. I always valued his opinion because he was a very wise elderly gentleman. After a few months, I learned that he had left a private legal practice in another country, and also a career as a judge, to be closer to his son and grandchildren in the United States. He wasn't familiar with our legal system to the extent required to pursue a career in law. He also told me that at his age, he really only needed a simple job for spare change. Few people knew the wealth of knowledge this seemingly ignorant custodian possessed. It is easy to look at someone and assume you know who they are and be completely wrong. I guess it is true that you can't always judge a book by its cover nor a judge by his custodian's uniform.