“Grown-ups love figures... When you tell them you've made a new friend they never ask you any questions about essential matters. They never say to you "What does his voice sound like? What games does he love best? Does he collect butterflies? " Instead they demand "How old is he? How much does he weigh? How much money does his father make? " Only from these figures do they think they have learned anything about him.”
More from Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to collect wood and don’t assign them…”
“Once you are my friend, I am responsible for you.”
“Of course I’ll hurt you. Of course you’ll hurt me. Of course we will hurt each other. But…”
“Of course I love you, it is my fault that you have not known it all the while.”