What You Lookin' At?

What do you see when you look at someone? Here you are, sitting in a mall, drinking your Tim’s, and watching people. I just love watching people. It’s a great pastime, so follow me into the mall. You see the mom dragging her young tired child on a shopping trip the child does not want to be on. And you think . . . An elderly couple slowly walks by one window after another eventually resting at the table beside you with one coffee between them. And you think . . .
Then there are the animated teens vying to be heard above the others, while having their cell phone glued to the other ear. The boys dressed to impress the girls, with what we older adults call, dumpy looking attire. The girls on the other hand are hoping to be noticed by dressing like Britney and Nicole. And you think . . .
There are many others tucked in between. It’s not difficult to discover the middle age couples who have just started dating after a long ago divorce. There really are people representing everyone from the less fortunate who come in out of the cold and those trying not to be notice, just get their business done and on their way. And you wonder . . .
And what do we wonder? Or do we just say; they look happy, they look determined, she seems focused, he looks as if he is lost, I would never wear that, do they realize how terrible they look? Seldom do we go past this point. We sit with the aroma of coffee about us, noticing people by what we see.
A long time ago I realize there are three things that tell us a lot about people. Those three things are, in order, eyes, hair and walk. These three things tell us more about a persons’ personality then any other. It takes a lot of looking and observing to perfect the interpretation of people through these items. Once you have it all figured out, you have only begun to know them. When a person walks a certain way you can tell if they are determined, agenda focused, confident or a number of other personality traits. The same goes for the hair and the eyes. Remember the most important part of this observation is the eyes. They are the windows to the heart, and they do not lie.
I repeat, what do you see when you look at someone? On one end of the spectrum, you see what they want you to see. At the other end, you see who they are and they like themselves. What we really see is the shell, the package. Even ourselves, we project a package we hope people will like.
A long time ago a very wise young women said to me, “You may look at the package but you seldom see the heart. Look into their eyes to find their hearts and then do something to touch it.” It’s been more than thirty years since I heard those words but they reverberate in my mind every time I walk through a crowd or join people at a church function. Only God sees the heart of a person. Only He and the person themselves know what is going on inside. God knows about the hurts and the disappointments. He knows about the struggles and the doubt and fears. He also knows how He can help them. And he does, through people like you and me who look beyond the facade and listen to the heart we noticed in their eyes.
Whom have you seen lately?
Rob