Numbers 35:11

וְהִקְרִיתֶ֤ם לָכֶם֙ עָרִ֔ים עָרֵ֥י מִקְלָ֖ט תִּהְיֶ֣ינָה לָכֶ֑ם וְנָ֥ס שָׁ֙מָּה֙ רֹצֵ֔חַ מַכֵּה־נֶ֖פֶשׁ בִּשְׁגָגָֽה׃

You shall provide yourselves with places to serve you as cities of refuge to which a manslayer who has slain a person unintentionally may flee.

Being human means making mistakes, and sometimes those mistakes are devastating. The Torah accounts for this reality. The accidental taking of a life is among the gravest mistakes a person can make. Yet even for such a tragedy, the Torah provides a path forward. If the death was truly unintentional, the inadvertent manslayer may flee to one of six designated Cities of Refuge. There, safe from the avenger, the individual remains until the death of the High Priest. It is a significant consequence – perhaps a lifetime spent away from home and family – but it is not condemnation. It is a path toward atonement.

Remarkably, this mechanism is established before the tragedy ever occurs. The cities are designated in advance, waiting for the day they may be needed. Though the pain and grief caused by such an event are unimaginable, the possibility of forgiveness exists before the mistake is ever made. If the Torah can prepare a path toward forgiveness for so terrible an act, how much more should we prepare ourselves to forgive the far lesser injuries others will inevitably cause us?

Moses and Joshua designated six cities where those who made a terrible mistake could find refuge. Their task now becomes ours. Forgiveness, especially in a situation like this one, can feel impossible. Maybe that’s why the Torah mentions it specifically. But what about the smaller things? From being cut off in traffic to someone spilling a drink on our favorite clothes, life presents endless opportunities for others to wrong us by mistake or bad luck. Like the Cities of Refuge, we can keep a small corner of our hearts open before it is ever needed, a place where those who unintentionally hurt us may find refuge, and where forgiveness has already begun.