September 18, 2009

“He is a caricature of himself.”

Physiognomy is what we do when we judge a person by their outward appearance, especially their face.  We may deem them to be aggressive or trustworthy or compassionate simply by looking and them and drawing conclusions.

Obviously, the credibility of such a “science” is and should remain in great question.  Growing up, we often heard the retort that “you can’t judge a book by its cover” when we made hasty or inconsiderate remarks regarding someone’s value based on their appearance.  Just last evening, in paying tribute to his mother, a good friend commented that “she valued things that money couldn’t buy”.  He was referring to her ability to find redeeming qualities within whomever she met in life's travels. 

If we are prone to distort or to oversimplify the essence of a person because of their semblance to our preconceived notions regarding outward aspects, it is best to stop.  All of us could be depicted in loaded portraits that accentuate the negative and ignore the positive. 

While traveling with a colleague several years ago, we happened upon an old friend we had not seen for many months.  It was a grand reunion in the airport.  Our old friend is nothing if not an “original”.  I say that with much affection and respect.  As we left him and headed to our connecting gate, my colleague, with tremendous deference, remarked, “He is a caricature of himself.”

In creating our caricatures, true friends exaggerate our endearing traits and minimize our frailties.       

Craig Halsey

They Said It

September 18, 2009