I often think of a funny experience, very funny looking back.

I was in an elevator in Thailand where I just moved to perhaps a year or so earlier. There was myself, a Thai person and another foreigner who couldn’t speak any Thai. I spoke with the Thai person the entire elevator ride and when we got off the foreigner and I he told my Thai was very good, impressive.

I laughed and explained the conversation details. The Thai person repeatably asked me questions. I repeatably replied apologizing asking him to repeat his question as I didn’t understand. I recall thinking that I couldn’t believe he hadn’t given up on asking me questions, given I couldn’t understand him at all.

Anyway, I told my friend over several back and forth was nothing more than myself apologizing for not understanding.

The age old warning of don’t judge a book by its cover.