Ofelia Restaurant and Cafe, Duhok, Iraq. April 2019
[from FB post: April 6, 2019]
On the topic of "don't judge too quickly"
I was having coffee at one of my favorite places in Duhok which is locally "upscale and expensive". A group of wealthy and fashion-conscious women came in. They took a lot of selfies. They fussed at the wait staff. They sent food back. In short, they would be the least likely heroines of any story I wrote.
However.... they invited to dine with them three street kids who were often outside selling candies to passersby. The ladies were kind, saw the kids got a hot meal, and didn't make any fuss about it whatsoever. (they also didn't take any photos together with the kids "oh hey, look how great I am helping poor people").
It really made me think about how often we look at people and think "I have you figured out" and probably we don't even have the first clue....
I came to know those three kids over time (the process starting after I wrote this) [see: Ofelia]. This experience remains one of my strongest memories reminding me never to judge anyone based on social status or outward appearance. I have eaten at the humblest of hawker stalls in Singapore with some of its wealthiest citizens. I have received acts of generosity from people who made a salary exponentially less than my own. We try to make order of the world around us to understand it, but in doing so, we should never box any person into a predetermined stereotype that, in fact, does not represent them at all. We all need to be reminded of this - repeatedly.