216. Design for Your Dumber Self

<p>As I kicked and punched at the man, I glanced at the knife in his right hand. And I felt it dig into my side.</p> <p>It all started as I crossed paths with the man. He reached in his pocket, and pulled out the knife.</p> <p>I then did what surely only an idiot would do. I began to fight him.</p> <p>A few seconds earlier, as the man approached me on the path, he stared at me fiercely. He charged toward me, and bared his gritting teeth. His eyes reduced to snake-eye slits, and glowed under the harsh night lamplight. He shook his head from side to side, growling.</p> <p>When the man transformed from just another passerby into a mortal threat, I felt something I had never felt before, and that I haven’t felt since. A bolt of lightning rose from my stomach, to my chest. I heard a deep growl grow into a roar. An authoritative “NOOO!” It wasn’t until I heard that roar echo off the surrounding buildings that I realized -- it had come from me.</p> <p>It’s worth noting, I’ve never been a “tough guy.” I had never been in a fight. Yes, my older brother beat me up more times than I can count, but if someone at school threatened me, I would always meekly back down.</p> <p>So as I watched myself, from outside of my own body, kicking and punching at this man with a deadly weapon in his hand, I was saying to myself, <em>What are you thinking!?</em></p> <p>But there was no going back. The struggle had begun, and for the first time ever, I was literally fighting for my life. <em>Is this how I die?</em>, I asked myself.</p> <p>But the snake-eyed man suddenly didn’t look so fearless and dangerous. His eyes widened, his eyebrows soared, his mouth gaped open -- its corners bending downward. I guess he thought he had picked an easy target. It turned out, he was wrong.</p> <p>As the man evaded my frantic kicks and punches, an economist took over my mind. I was fighting for my life. He -- was fighting for -- what? An iPhone? Some money? He still hadn’t said anything, so I didn’t know for sure.</p> <p>And that’s when I felt the knife di