Hasty conclusions about my pasty skin

I love going to the fruit stand up the street here in Costa Rica.  I usually walk up in the morning to grab some green beans, an apple, or a pepper to take with me for the day.  The other day when I went to the stand, an old man was there buying his own produce.  I did the friendly (socially acceptable) thing- I smiled and then looked away.  This man, however, did not.  He smiled, but then stared at me for a good 2 minutes or more.  All I could think was, "how rude!" and "this is NOT polite."  I did my best to ignore him and turn my head so he couldn't stare.  I know my pasty white skin is a rare sight around here, but this was getting ridiculous.

It was at this moment of me thinking the worst of this man that I realized he was trying to pay for the apple I wanted to buy.  Embarrassment overwhelmed me.  How dare I think the worst of this man when he was attempting to show me love?

John 7:24 reminds us, "do not judge by appearances, but with right judgement." 

Far too often I make assumptions.  I make assumptions based on appearances, limited knowledge, and biased judgments.  And far too often these assumptions are wrong.

Things are not always as they seem.  Maybe I shouldn't jump to hasty conclusions about my pasty skin attracting unecessary attention.  Maybe I just shouldn't jump to conlcusions at all.  Maybe I should leave that up to God and mind my own business.