a tiny little fraction of a whole

attended a seminar organised by the tourism research unit yesterday.
it was a platform for in the process, soon to be, just received their PHD students to present their research studies in front of all the established academics.
basically it was a room full of brilliant people.
i would imagine that it would be freaking nerve wrecking to be standing up there with people who know so much more than you and having them ask questions.

it felt a little surreal for me.
the only contact that i have with these people are through the mountains of journals that i have read. and to actually see some of them in person, well, they are not what i imagine them to be.
it is strange how when you hear your friend speaking about another individual, you envision and create a image of the person based on that.
when i read a book, i naturally assume that the style of writing would reflect how the person would be in real life.
when i listen to a song, i imagine that the singer/composer would encompass a feel or display characteristics which are present in the lyrics.

in reality, the same person that you perceived to be is often not what you perceive to be. does it make sense?
i guess what i really want to say is that don't judge, or don't have preconceived notions of a person based on the books that he writes, what others think about him or the songs that he sings.
because it is just a tiny little fraction of a whole.