First do no harm, a very good place to start.  If I can’t help, I don’t hurt.   I do kill cockroaches when I see them, but I do it exactly the way I want to go– fast, in one blow, a certain death, no lingering in agony, even for a second.  I am a bit embarrassed to say I often apologize to the individual as I wipe him or her out.  It’s not their fault they are loathsome insects or that I can’t tolerate them near my kitchen sink.

Gentle is the goal, I tell myself.  I do not want to use the powers, already sharpened and ready inside me, to strike at people who do me wrong.  I want to give them a chance to do right, and, if they don’t, I want to leave without looking back.  I don’t need the last word, I just need to be away from toxic types.

But here’s the thing, sometimes these toxic types keep screaming for a showdown.   They can be very demanding and unreasonable about such things.  They provoke once, and if you let it go, they get furious and dial up the provocation the next time.  Over time they will find a way to set up the showdown they’re looking for, or die trying.   They have this wild west mentality, they want to be the fastest gun and they want a damn shootout to prove that they, and not you, are the baddest killer around.  

I don’t want to have to knock any of these toxic sociopath zombies out anymore.  There’s nothing in it for anybody.  First do no harm, and lastly, do no harm.  Amen.