Here’s the thing: we all make mistakes, sometimes with harmful consequences for ourselves and others. Mostly we don’t make these mistakes out of ill will or an evil nature, but simply because we are human beings, inclined to error and imperfection by our very nature. Our relationships are messy; we try; we do our best, but often there is still hurt, still harm, still wrong even. What are we to do with ourselves and each other in light of this pervasive imperfection? There is a choice. You can take these parts of us that don’t measure up, that sometimes do the “wrong” thing despite meaning well and allow the harsh climate of our inner critics to hold sway and attack them. Or you can provide them with some shelter, a place of refuge and acceptance and compassion. In Numbers 35:6-7, the Torah opts for the second alternative in creating the ir miklat, the city of refuge, for the accidental killer.