Attending To More Important Needs

(We have a lecturer who is obsessed with perfect attendance at her lectures and seminars, to the point of sending out emails of gratuitous praise for those who make it a month without missing a single one. She has one request, though, that if you miss a lecture you should explain why. One of her usual perfect attendees misses a lecture and seminar for the day and she’s not happy. The woman turns up at the next lecture and our lecturer spends the entire time ignoring her as she tries to explain herself in private. The woman doesn’t have anything with her, and refuses to sit down, so it’s obvious she’s in a hurry, but for whatever reason she stays. At the end of the lecture:)

Lecturer: “As you all know, I am an admirer of those who put in the effort and attend my lectures. I am also an admirer of those who I believe are genuinely sincere in their apology. Now, [Student], you were one of my best, and I am seriously disappointed in you. No phone call, no email. No attempt whatsoever to explain your attendance, or LACK THERE OF, yesterday. You spent this entire lecture buzzing around me when you should be learning. You haven’t even bothered to sit down! So here is your opportunity.” *presenting the entire lecture theater to the student* “Please tell us why you felt is necessary to miss my lecture yesterday, and why you didn’t bother to explain until now.”

Student: *crying and shouting for everyone to hear* “Because my daughter was run over by a truck yesterday. I didn’t want to come in today at all, and I spent all morning phoning you, which you flatly ignored. I haven’t even had time to turn on a computer much less type out an email. I only decided to drop by because I drove by here on the way back to the hospital. I… I respected enough to explain in person what happened.” *becoming hysterical* “BUT YOU HAVE SPENT THE ENTIRE TIME, THE ENTIRE F****** TIME IGNORING ME, YOU SPITEFUL COW! I HOPE I NEVER SEE YOU AGAIN!”

(The student then ran out of the room screaming in agony. You could literally hear a pin drop as the entire theater turned to our lecturer and glared her into the ground. She walked out, white as a sheet, and that’s the last we heard of her. If it had been me, I wouldn’t have even bothered, but that was the last time we saw the student, too. We have no idea if her daughter survived, or why she was so intent on apologising for something no one should have to apologise for.)