Burning Beneath

What defines our perceptions, shaping the way we see and feel about someone or something in those fleeting first moments? Why do some first impressions strike us as good or bad, even before we have the full picture? What drives that split-second decision—an unspoken energy, a gut feeling, or something deeper?

First impressions are curious things, often formed in an instant but capable of leaving lasting imprints. But can we trust them? Sometimes they seem to align perfectly with reality, as if our instincts have tapped into some hidden truth. Other times, they feel like a trick of the mind, shaped by biases, past experiences, or even the mood we’re in that day.

If these impressions can change—and often they do—does that mean they were wrong? Or is it simply that they were incomplete, fragments of a larger story we didn’t yet know how to read? Maybe first impressions are neither right nor wrong; they’re just a starting point, a snapshot colored by the lens of our own perception.

The real question is whether we allow those initial impressions to harden into judgment or remain open to the idea that people and experiences are far more layered than what meets the eye. Perhaps the gut feeling we rely on isn’t wrong, but it’s only part of the picture—one brushstroke on a canvas that takes time and openness to fully paint.