A good friend of mine got into a fight when he was 10 with a 17 year old because the jerk who lived across the street would shout "Hay, that kid can beet you up" to the high school want-to-be gangsters as they would walk home from school.
One of the want-to-be gangsters decided it was time to slap a 10 year old around because of this. My friend politely explained that he didn't want to fight, and that the kid across the street was a jerk, but it was too late. Some one was going to get a beating down. Thankfully my friend COULD kick the living snot out of a 17 year old without any problem. He threw the 17year old over his shoulder and pinned him down, and then explained again very politely that he was not a fighter and asked him very nicely to go away.
The jerk came back in about an hour with his gang and started throwing stuff at the house and yelling to come out and have a clean fight. My friend got rid of them by holding up the phone to the window and shouting "I'm calling the cops right now" and then shouting "9....1....1..." They all took off runing and we never saw them again.
We are in our 30s now and his calm, peaceful ways have only gotten more so. He has relay earned my respect.