Hi, I’m Pat. Pat the Cat (=^‥^=) Some people call me Patience, but I’m not that patient.

My therapy is to escape into my own body with ice skating, ballet, swimming, and book writing and to live in this alternative reality until I die, and since I already have the gravesite picked out and written into my will, under that old ancient tree whose roots will probably have to be cut to have my casket descend, that tree has game in keeping me alive! So, I’m all good! 

Peer Appreciation Form 

"The same attitude of relaxed gentleness [practiced in judo] is most beautifully seen when you watch cats climbing trees. When a cat falls out of a tree, it lets go of itself. The cat becomes completely relaxed, and lands lightly on the ground. But if a cat were about to fall out of a tree and suddenly made up its mind that it didn't want to fall, it would become tense and rigid, and would be just a bag of broken bones upon landing.

"In the same way, it is the philosophy of the Tao that we are all falling off a tree, at every moment of our lives. As a matter of fact, the moment we were born we were kicked off a precipice and we are falling, and there is nothing that can stop it. So instead of living in a state of chronic tension, and clinging to all sorts of things that are actually falling with us because the whole world is impermanent, be like a cat. Don't resist it."

— Alan Watts

Quotes from Friends:

“In French, there is a saying called “la barbe ne fait pas la sagesse” (a beard does not mean wisdom)” FreedomMauve

“As if a frog stays in a pot of boiling water as the water boils, it won't feel it boiling. Meaning that if one allows things that are abusive to them, they might believe this is the normal.” Reclining Fate, Romanian saying

"But it’s just another example of people will just use you up like an orange." Ry Boisse40

“But yeah! I did it and it was nice! My hair is no longer so oily that the USA might invade it!” Sakaiuu

"Most people are more intelligent than even they know." DRHerrington

"And who on Earth ever said that being intelligent is useless? I think kindness is infectious." Gradatim

"109-Year-Old Woman says Secret to Long Life is Avoiding other people." Reputable News Source

“My gumboots in the creek.” sentientape

"Little Pat." Howe Georgia 20

"Hello I'm Walker." Walker 7957

"But I'm not ready to give up yet." Walker 7957

"I am your friend 😊." Walker 7957

“Rule 8: Never underestimate our Patience.” Anne

”Here comes Patience ice skating into Sharing Circle.” Wooof

”I vant a baybbeee. I can mold them into spies.” Sinbad the Sailor

"Inter Milan, more like Intermediate Mama." Daughter

"Hi Pat the meow ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️🐈." Freedomauve

"Many people have said similar things to me over things I do for others, regardless of how said others have treated me. All I can say is I feel like you are doing the right thing, and like I tell people when they say things like 'Why would you help them, after how they have behaved towards you?', it's not the things that others do that define me, it's the things I do🤷🏻‍♂️." DRHerrington

"Like sands in a meditation garden, perhaps they've sifted away for the time being." Halcyon Salad

"Wish I got taller." Wooof

"Triple ditto to the growth thing, Wooof. I just always insist that I'm allowed to stand on a stepstool or applebox." Halcyon Salad

"I should be a lot fatter than I am really." Depressed Cinderella

"There's a quote by Kafka I think that goes, 'I used to walk around without a mask until I realized that everyone else had one and I was the fool.'" Sinbad the Sailor

"I'm always honest when people ask about my life. Although it normally kills the chat. But I choose to be happy the best I can." Tiny Whisper 11

"It's like when you're chatting with People and they ask if you're okay and you're not but you say you are 'coz you know they don't want a real answer 'coz then that kills the convo as they don't know what to say." Secret Maple 4471

"I only refer when it's not needed but this wasn't me." Sinbad the Sailor

"😁it's called 69 mating positions 😏 unfortunately it's about chess." Tiny Whisper 11

"Pat is having a day and someone named Your Mom comes in, it's a world of mystery." Sinbad the Sailor

"I need a host! I'm holding out for a host till the end of the night. Host gotta be strong and host gotta be fast and host gotta be fresh from the fight!" Wooof

"Pulls out my custom ninja star. Splat!" Wooof

"Tired of all your words going out to those for whom you intended to read them? Annoyed by communication? Then use the Word Chewing Vortex! For only six easy payments of $499.21, you can use the Vortex immediately!" Halcyon Salad

"You don't tug on Superman's cape. You don't spit in the wind. You don't pull the mask off the ol' Lone Ranger and you don't mess around with Wooof." Wooof

"I'm happy that I also feel the same way as some of y'all because I mostly wanted people to listen mainly and reassure me mainly cause I already found the solutions I could manage, I mean it depends on a problem of course but if is my anxious thoughts or such, that's where I leaned more on that though." Valley Ross

"Kia Ora from New Zealand." Laura102

"I should use that as a pick up line. 'dang I should throw you in a freezer cause you're way too hot.'" Bright Indigo

"It can be whatever you two make of it. A couple hours of polite forced conversation or healing." Cal Survivor

"My unicorn’s name is mayo. Mayo neighs." Tiny Whisper 11

"There are so many great people in the world. If you can’t find one. Be one." Parker 64 

"l.i.s.t.e.n.i.n.g," SinbadTheSailor108

"❤️ Find people you can create an endless loop of kindness with." Gradatim

"The math ain’t mathing on that for me, healthy. Mental health and security, improving yourself, and healing trauma, that is incredibly romantic, as that helps to have the healthiest version of you for your partner." kinder3ssen97

"The only thing one has to face due to societal norms is unsolicited opinions and advice! People will say the most random things anyway ......... one can't stop living!" navyAcai433

 "The most human, the best thing to do from one person to another is to let one go and heal on their own path." BrightIndigo

"They see me Rollin. They hatin', Trying to catch me sharing dirty. hehehe." Wooof

"They said glamour shots would be the highlight of a young girls life, fashion show, endless propaganda of what they considered limitations, but they were wrong the highlight of my life is to be spontaneous, free willed and loved for the miraculous nature of just being me..” Insightful Phoenix

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When Einstein gave lectures at U.S. universities, the question students asked him most was: Do you believe in God? And he always answered: I believe in the God of Spinoza.

Baruch de Spinoza was a Dutch philosopher considered one of the great rationalists of 17th century philosophy, along with Descartes.

According to Spinoza, God would say: “Stop praying. I want you to go out into the world and enjoy your life. I want you to sing, have fun and enjoy everything I've made for you.

“Stop going into those dark, cold temples that you built yourself and saying they are my house. My house is in the mountains, in the woods, rivers, lakes, beaches. That's where I live and there I express my love for you.

“Stop blaming me for your miserable life; I never told you there was anything wrong with you or that you were a sinner, or that your sexuality was a bad thing. Sex is a gift I have given you and with which you can express your love, your ecstasy, your joy. So don't blame me for everything that others made you believe.

“Stop reading alleged sacred scriptures that have nothing to do with me. If you can't read me in a sunrise, in a landscape, in the look of your friends, in your son's eyes—you will find me in no book!

“Stop asking me, ‘Will you tell me how to do my job?’ Stop being so scared of me. I do not judge you or criticize you, nor get angry or bothered. I am pure love.

“Stop asking for forgiveness, there's nothing to forgive. If I made you, I filled you with passions, limitations, pleasures, feelings, needs, inconsistencies, and best of all, free will. Why would I blame you if you respond to something I put in you? How could I punish you for being the way you are, if I'm the one who made you? Do you think I could create a place to burn all my children who behave badly for the rest of eternity? What kind of god would do that?

“Respect your peers, and don't give what you don't want for yourself. All I ask is that you pay attention in your life—alertness is your guide.

“My beloved, this life is not a test, not a step on the way, not a rehearsal, not a prelude to paradise. This life is the only thing here and now—and it is all you need.

“I have set you absolutely free, no prizes or punishments, no sins or virtues, no one carries a marker, no one keeps a record.

You are absolutely free to create in your life. It’s you who creates heaven or hell.

“Live as if there is nothing beyond this life, as if this is your only chance to enjoy, to love, to exist. Then you will have enjoyed the opportunity I gave you. And if there is an afterlife, rest assured that I won't ask if you behaved right or wrong, I'll ask, ‘Did you like it? Did you have fun? What did you enjoy the most? What did you learn?’

“Stop believing in me; believing is assuming, guessing, imagining. I don't want you to believe in me, I want you to believe in you. I want you to feel me in you when you kiss your beloved, when you tuck in your little girl, when you caress your dog, when you bathe in the sea.

“Stop praising me. What kind of egomaniac God do you think I am? I'm bored with being praised. I'm tired of being thanked. Feeling grateful? Prove it by taking care of yourself, your health, your relationships, the world. Express your joy! That's the way to praise me.

“Stop complicating things and repeating as a parrot what you've been taught about me. Why do you need more miracles? So many explanations?

“The only thing for sure is that you are here, that you are alive, that this world is full of wonders.”

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 The Cat Came Back

Old Mister Johnson had troubles of his own

He had a yellow cat that wouldn't leave its home

He tried and he tried to give the cat away

He gave it to a man goin' far, far away

--

But the cat came back the very next day

The cat came back, they thought he was a goner

But the cat came back, it just couldn't stay away

Away, away

--

Can you make a cat sound?

Meow, meow, meow

--

So he gave it to a woman going up in a balloon

He told him for to take it to the man up in the moon

The balloon came down about 90 miles away

And where the woman is now, well, I cannot say

--

But the cat came back the very next day

The cat came back, we thought he was a goner

But the cat came back, it just couldn't stay away

Away, away

--

Is that cat sound?

Meow, meow, meow, meow

--

So he gave it to a man going way out West

He told him for to take it to the one he loved the best

First the train hit the curve, then it jumped the rail

And nobody was left to tell the awful tale

--

But the cat came back the very next day

The cat came back, we thought he was a goner

But the cat came back, it just couldn't stay away

Away, away

--

The cat came back the very next day

The cat came back, we thought he was a goner

But the cat came back, it just couldn't stay away

Away, away

--

Meow, meow, meow

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“Most of us have been raised to believe that the road to a happy life is paved with pleasure, and that the pursuit of pleasure is the path to fulfillment. But as we grow up, we begin to realize that life is not always easy or pleasurable. In fact, much of it is difficult and painful. We all experience loss, disappointment, illness, aging, and eventually death. We encounter stress, anxiety, and fear. We suffer from the slings and arrows of everyday life.

And yet, we continue to cling to the idea that happiness is found in pleasure and the avoidance of pain. We try to avoid our painful experiences by numbing ourselves with drugs or alcohol, distracting ourselves with TV or social media, or obsessing over our work or our relationships. But the more we try to avoid the basic reality that all human life involves pain, the more we are likely to struggle with that pain when it arises, thereby creating even more suffering.

The truth is that happiness is not found in the avoidance of pain, but in the willingness to face and accept our pain. It is in the willingness to experience our painful thoughts and feelings, to acknowledge them without judgment, and to take action in line with our values and goals. It is in the willingness to be present in the moment, to connect with our senses and our environment, and to find joy and meaning in the simple things in life.”. ~Russ Harris

(Book: The Happiness Trap https://amzn.to/42JwiTc)

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“Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now.” William Hutchinson Murray

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"When you wonder whether or not your life will ever be changed, if you will ever be changed into my image, remember this. Our Father is using in your life the same power that He used to raise Me from the dead. This resurrection power is what will allow the old you to die off and the new you to be reborn into my likeness. Trust Him to complete what He has begun." (Eph 1:19)

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Mother Teresa's Anyway Poem

People are often unreasonable, illogical and self centered; Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives; Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies; Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you; Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight; Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous; Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow; Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough; Give the world the best you've got anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and your God; It was never between you and them anyway.

[Reportedly inscribed on the wall of Mother Teresa's children's home in Calcutta, and attributed to her. However, an article in the New York Times has since reported (March 8, 2002) that the original version of this poem was written by Kent M. Keith.]

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Quotes from Patience

"The Hippies were probably right. It's really all about Peace, Joy, Love."

"When I am elderly, and if I get lost, or go to your house by accident, or am looking for a friend or a church, please just steer me back home. Thank you. Public Service Announcement."

"It reminds me of something I read, that whenever we write something we spell it out, and in a way, we're casting a spell. Our words are very powerful."

"I would be a terrible mentor for teens, because the last time I really talked with a teenager was on a Crisis Line. Unfortunately, I would probably just tell the teens stories of things I survived, like that game where we hang our bodies out of the car while driving fast through the country, or tipping cows, or that other time when all the track people were clustered in the pit of the high jump. Also, and this probably destroys any hope I have of anonymity, there was the time our Cross Country Team lifted up our Cross Country Coach's VW and put it in the Tennis Court. Teens usually just laugh and go on their way.

"There was also the Civil Disobedience, later in my life, which basically proves that me and Authority and the War Machine don't get along much. Thereby maybe making you laugh, but not really helpful Adulting advice, like how to pay bills, get to your job on time, be Responsible, and carve out time to Meditate. I would say one of my regrets was to not follow my dream earlier of being a Writer. But the decades spent as a Teacher and Professor, scraping all those pennies together, allowed me a nest egg so I can do what I want, so there's that. I'm an Expert Facilitator from back in the Day when I was a Peacenik. We did a lot of Sharing Circles back then. I believe the Indigenous Peoples got it right with their Councils. I'm a full on Pacifist. I believe in Peace.

"And, sometimes I also believe in Peach. When peaches are fresh and juicy and there's that sweet fuzz on the outside, now that's a sensual delight."

”I was a Freaking Crisis Goddess! I could talk a cat off the edge of a cliff! Six months and only one active rescue.”

"Oh yeah, some of you probably want to know what my issues are. Well, ADHD, so I was suffering without knowing what it was for most of my life. Then, depression for years until I went weeping into the doctor's office one day, and she said, ‘Why don't I prescribe a little something for you.’ I've been taking the little something ever since and it really helped lift the cloud that had followed me closely up until that point.

“Let's see: other stuff? Grief after tending to my parents until they died. Seeing them age and die. Oh yeah, there was stuff when I was younger, but I don't like to think about it much. If needed, I can draw on it to comfort you. 

“In the other part of my life, the Striving Part, I accomplished some things. I attained level of PhD, doctorate in Education. I've written some writing. I've taught hundreds of classes, both through the school system and through colleges and universities. 

“Students would come back to me and visit sometimes, usually when they accomplished something, like a Graduation, or getting First Pick on a Baseball Team. 

"Also, I’ve been married over 30 to the same man and we successfully raised two children to adulthood. Proud of that, most of all. We are not empty nesters, because our adopted dog keeps us busy and apparently we will be taking in some more people soon, the Lucky Family.”

"I am working on seven different books. One is close to finished and I'm pitching it to a publisher. Wish me luck!"

"I have a few different gigs. One is here on 7 cups, another working Crisis Lines, yet another a Homeless Outreach Initiative called Patience Delivers, and also I hold preemie babies in the local hospital to let them hear my heart beat and for me to admire their tiny fingers and toes, and their cute little faces, and to wish them a good life, and to sing them little songs and lullabies."

"So many years I was fighting for the youthful unnatural colour, and I didn't know that the natural colour would be youthful just because I felt good and youthful under the hair."

"The Lucky Family move in is going well. So far, lots of showers have been taken. Our family meeting went well. No smoking, no alcohol, those rules were discussed. Very few expectations, but some help around the yard, weeding and other land type help will be much appreciated. We'll see how it goes. So far so good. One day at a time. Nice people. I was down on my luck at least once so glad to be able to do something solid. Feels like a full circle."

”Humans over bots if I have to choose. I choose humans.”

"I am the opposite of sweet, but I'm expert on-the-feet triage person."

"I will put my face right into the impatiens, violets and roses, sometimes to excess. I believe in Beauty and Truth, also good fragrances."

"There's nothing richer than the rich soil after the leaves haven't been raked for years and it all composts down to this black gold. I like it when it gets under my fingernails and my hands look rough and calloused. I have always read a person's character from their handshake. If their hand is big, rough, calloused, maybe gnarly, then I know something about them. Perhaps they are even a bit like me."

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♥️🐕

Dance On!

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