Fragile

Our outward appearance is a public representation of self. 

It is a protective shell pieced together from the results of life experiences and shows only a veneer of who we are. 

It is the yardstick by which we judge and are judged. 

However, as the character Atticus said in the book To Kill a Mockingbird, “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view (…) until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.” 

Beneath the surface, what we see is often a different, more sensitive human being. 

As with boxes of precious belongings, we should all be labelled FRAGILE: Handle me with care.