We all know the cliché, the one that usually goes something like this, “You won’t have a second chance to make a first impression.” There is of course irrefutable logic tied to that notion, but if one digs more deeply into the concept, thought-provoking flags begin to wave, at least they do if someone as accomplished as Amor Towles takes up the challenge.

In one scene in Towles’ novel, A Gentleman in Moscow, the Count (the gentleman of the title) is speaking with a woman who on first meeting little impressed him. But, as she reveals a telling detail of her background, the Count muses on the virtues of withholding judgement on first meetings..

“After all, what can a first impression tell us about someone we’ve just met for a minute in the lobby of the hotel? For that matter, what can a first impression tell us about anyone? Why, no more than a chord can tell us about Beethoven, or a brushstroke about Botticelli. By their very nature, human beings are so capricious, so complex, so delightfully contradictory, that they deserve not only our consideration, but our reconsideration – and our unwavering determination to withhold our opinion until we have engaged with them in every possible setting at every possible hour.”

I think it’s unlikely that many of us will meet someone new while celebrating tomorrow’s feast (with Covid-19 now as our Emperor), but I’ve tucked the Count’s pondering into a safe corner, just in case.

Update: While sorting through images of my 1987 adventures in Finland and turning them into words, I realized that my flight from Helsinki to Kuopio was so unusual, and so perfectly timed, that it deserves a post of its own. I’m nearly finished with that story. I’ll put that part of the story up later today.