Dark Sides.

It takes a while to get to know a person. As in, really getting to know a person. This is true for both the better and the worse.

For instance, your first impression of a person might be that of a nice, friendly guy who always finds a way to keep a conversation going. This is a good thing, you think, because conversations with new people are often a bit awkward, and you don't like awkward. Over time, though, you may realize that this person constantly wants to keep a conversation going, won't stop talking, and ends up annoying the hell out of you.

On the other hand, you might meet someone for the first time and immediately decide that the guy isn't a person you would enjoy spending more than two minutes with. Over time, you may find more and more reasons to convince yourself that that initial impression was spot on. You start to pat yourself on the back due to your good judgement. Given even more time, though, you realize that this person that you dislike so much does, in fact, have a good side to him - he could be really loyal to his friends, for example.

Whatever your initial impression of a person is, it isn't something that you should really hang on to, because that first impression is most likely wrong. Don't judge a book by its cover, and all that.

Since I first arrived in Nilai, I've been subjected to numerous revelations - some left me pleasantly surprised, and others less so. I won't go into specifics - as literally anyone could be reading this - but I've learned through all these experiences to not take things at face value. Add in the fact that my people-reading abilities have improved dramatically over the past year or so, and it's actually quite depressing to find that most people are not who they seem to be at first, and I don't mean that in a good way.

Finding someone who turns out to be an even better person than you first thought they were, and keeps on surprising you by continuously proving that first impression wrong, is exceptionally rare. If I were to find a person like that, I would never want to let him or her go. It would be akin to finally winning the lottery after years of buying losing tickets.

Of course, that doesn't mean you should simply discard certain people in your life just because they have certain flaws. Nobody's perfect, not even you - so how is it fair that you expect others to be? If you truly value your relationship with someone, you find a way to make it work - flaws and all.

Personally, I just think that, in a world where greed, selfishness and other negative traits run rampant, why should I add to that number? Why should I be yet another losing ticket, bringing about even more misery and disappointment to a world that already carries more than enough of it?

"Be the change you wish to see in the world," said Mahatma Gandhi. Be a winning lottery ticket.