This reminds me of something that happened when I was in 300L.
I stayed in a hostel where the gate was always locked very early. One morning, a student had an important professional exam scheduled for 7am. He woke up before dawn, dressed up, and begged the hostel caretaker to open the gate.
The man refused.
His exact words were, "Rules are rules. The gate opens at 6am."
The student kept pleading, explaining that missing the exam could affect his entire semester, but the caretaker didn't care.
Luckily, another student who had witnessed everything climbed over the fence, went around the compound, and informed the landlord.
When the landlord arrived and heard what happened, he was furious. Instead of praising the caretaker for "following rules," he asked him a simple question:
"If this was your child, would you still be quoting hostel regulations?"
The gate was opened immediately.
That day taught me something I'll never forget:
Rules are important, but humanity is more important. When people use authority without compassion, they stop leading and start oppressing.
I’m in love with this sentence:
“The degree to which a person can grow is directly proportional to the amount of truth he can accept about himself without running away.”