Some people are like cats who go out of their way to pick on the weak, the mice of the world. Cats use their size to pounce on smaller, more defenseless animals. Human cats use their status, intelligence, or wealth to hurt others at work or in society who have less advantages. On the outside, cats may look normal, balanced, and successful. But they are pure evil on the inside.

How can you spot a human cat? If someone seems to take joy in seeing others squirm, you are probably looking at one. Cats get excited when they cause discomfort, and they love believing that they can outsmart everyone else. Cats fool the world because they apply their innate stealth and cunning on trusting or naive victims.

And sometimes it’s not enough for cats to make others feel small. Cats take time to savor the helplessness of others. I wonder if that’s where the phrase “playing a game of cat and mouse” comes from?

When the cat is a school-yard bully, he doesn’t want to steal the bicycle from a mouse victim. He prefers to throw the bike around, stomp on it, and smash it to bits while the mouse watches, powerless to stop it.

You know you’re in a relationship with a cat if there is an inverse relationship between your misery and the other person’s joy. Cats are most content once they’ve degraded and debased someone into submission.

So do you feel like a mouse in a personal or professional relationship? It’s not fun to be powerless. One way to tell if you’re feeling like a mouse is if you lose sleep worrying about cats. And when you do get to sleep, you dream about cats. When awake, you keep a wary eye in the shadows, fretting that danger lurks around every corner.

There is no quick or easy fix to becoming less of a target for cats. What do you do if the cat is your boss? Or the cat is your spouse? Or child? You might find value in the book, “Fool-Proofing Your Life: Wisdom for Untangling Your Most Difficult Relationships” by Jan Silvious. Granted, this is more about dealing with fools and not bullies. But the book is full of many good pointers and tips.

And in the meantime, take an honest inventory of your situation. Whenever you find that you have invited a cat into your life, retract the invitation. Seek the counsel of wise friends and professionals who care about you and what happens to you. Change your locks. And once you’ve driven the cats away, avoid trashcans and other places where cats hang out in the future.

My high school nephew, Mike, provided the original artwork. If you enjoy these drawings, check out some of his other work at this link.