Mercy Me

I know I look at weird words.  I have been thinking heaps about the word “mercy” of late.  The Cambridge dictionary defines mercy as “kindness that makes you forgive someone, usually someone that you have authority over:”, while vocabulary.com says it is “a disposition to be kind or forgiving.”
I must confess mercy is a word dear to my heart.  I guess that is due to the way I look at the world.  Treating others the way I would want to be treated.
It is also one of the reasons I am not fond of some algorithms.  It seems to me many algorithms do not account for the human condition.  They ask for perfection in an imperfect world among an imperfect people.
I do not condone a lack of consequences for actions, and sometimes punishment it the only way for a lesson to be learned.  Sometimes punishment is an act of mercy.  But in other cases, I really feel that “up front” mercy should be shown.  Ok mistakes may have been made, but the person (and it could be me) who has committed the transgression acknowledges what they have done and commits to doing better. 
This is where I reckon the fruit of action is seen.  It becomes obvious if the wool has been pulled over my eyes, or if the attempt to do and be better is genuine.  As is said “you can fool some of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time.”
Besides, I ask myself who am I to set myself up in some matters?  Good chance I am at a different place on life’s journey than another.  My role is to encourage as I have been encouraged.
I guess the bottom line for me is the answer yes to the question, “do I want mercy?” Time will tell if I use the mercy shown to further my own aims or if it is life changing for the better.  It seems only fair that the measure I judge others by, should be the measure I am judged by.