What I notice

What I notice in another person can tell me something about what matters to me. If wealth is on my mind, I may notice the watch or the car. If I am interested in knowledge, I may notice what the person understands. If I am focused on bodies, I may notice someone’s body shape.

The same person can be seen through different interests. My first impression already contains something of me. I am noticing certain details and leaving others outside the picture.

I think about the depth of how we look, from the obvious details to the subtler things we come to understand about a person.

The phrase 'you see what you are' captures something I recognise. It makes me think about what I am looking for when I meet someone, and how much of that person I have still to understand.