What is fear?

Fear is a black cat, hiding in the leafy bushes at night. When it startles, it jumps up, rustling the leaves and shattering the silence, causing a wandering soul to cry out, just as it slinks back into another shadowy crevice with a hundred other cats.

Why not have mercy on that poor cat? Say, “Come here, kitty!” Give her a morsel of tuna wrapped in love, or dime of catnip in a bowl of joy. Put a pink polka dotted bow around her neck, and call her Hope.

She’ll go tell all the other cats about your generosity. They won’t be so startled when you walk by their hideouts in the night. Rather, they’ll come falling to the ground before you, bellies up, and purring in your open hands.