Over the Hill on the Yelllow Brick Road, I saw a grinning cat sitting in a tree. A moment later, the cat disappeared. The next moment, he appeared on the top of a bush. Then strangely, his body faded. All that remained was his smile and his eyes. Was it possible he was the Cheshire Cat from the story of Alice in Wonderland? I had to ask!
Hey—are you—
CHESIRE CAT: Yes I am. The Cheshire Cat.
But, you live in Wonderland. What are you doing here? How did you get Over the Hill on the Yellow Brick Road?
CHESHIRE CAT: How does anyone ever get anywhere? With great difficulty.
I suppose.
CHESHIRE CAT: But I just had to come. Like the rest of you here, I’m growing older and trying to figure out where I belong in the world. I’m having trouble relating to the Mad Hatter, the White Rabbit, and the others the way I used to. All of a sudden, out of nowhere, I’m changing. I’m obsessing with my age.
That’s how I ended up Over the Hill on the Yellow Brick Road. I was looking for friends who understood what I was going through. I wasn’t sure where or how I’d find them, but I felt compelled to look.
CHESHIRE CAT: I’m looking for others, like me, who can appear and disappear in older age.
Oh. Well, I’m sorry I can’t help you. I don’t do that.
CHESHIRE CAT: Of course you do.
What? How?
CHESHIRE CAT: You’re a blogger. And so are most of the others who are reading my words right now. Your relationships with each other appear and disappear with a tap of an electronic device. As soon as your phones or computers are turned off, you’re gone. And as soon as you return to the internet, you appear.
You know, you’re right—
CHESHIRE CAT: The question is, if your blogger friends are virtual, are they real?
Well, you appear and disappear, and you’re real.
CHESHIRE CAT: Fair point. But how can you be sure?
Because though I can only see your grin and your eyes at the moment, I feel your spirit as you speak. The same is true with my virtual blogging community.
CHESHIRE CAT: Hmmm…Anything else?
Well, when I don’t have access to the internet, I’m sad. I miss my virtual friends.
CHESHIRE CAT: Hmm. Do say more.
Since virtual bloggers and I communicate through posts and comment sections, we say exactly what we want to say, very concisely. No small talk. And we speak from our hearts.
CHESHIRE CAT: Intriguing.
Also- I never worry about the way I look when I communicate with virtual friends. I don’t have to clean my house before I speak to them. I don’t have to make special appointments to get together and then change my schedule around. We appear to each other, and disappear, whenever we’re ready.
CHESHIRE CAT: Increasingly interesting…
And, if I can’t leave home due to health issues or other problems, my virtual community is still there. We communicate the way we always do. So, though I have never met these amazing people in the flesh, they MUST BE REAL.
CHESHIRE CAT: It’s a distinct possibility. In that case…when I return to Wonderland, might I join your virtual community? May I follow your blog?
I would love that.
CHESHIRE CAT: Thank you.
So…I guess you’re saying…you don’t think it’s insane that I call a virtual community of people, who appear and disappear, my friends?
CHESHIRE CAT: Do I think it’s insane? Well…you know what they say in Wonderland. We’re all mad.
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Copyrightoverthehillontheyellowbrickroad2108
Like pen pals.
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Very true. Though pen pals receive actual letters in the mail. Something we can hold. 🙂
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Yes, closer to the real thing.
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Or else I’m obsessing with this concept for absolutely no reason and driving everyone mad.
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Oh dear! I’m not a blogger, just a follower…does this mean that I am not real?
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Uh oh! Oh no! I guess it does mean you’re not real! Don’t worry! I’ll find some fairy dust to make you real. (LOL) 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
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As usual an entertaining but also thought provoking post my friend.
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Thank you, my friend. 🙂
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I’m getting real old, getting real grey hair, getting real aches and pains…I must be real!
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Ha Haaaaa! LOL very loudly! Great answer!!!!! And I’m right there with ya!
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I have a lot of TV friends. They are pretty reliable to be there when I click them on, and when I’ve had enough socializing, I can click them off. It never occurred to me whether they are real or not.
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Yes, I know, I have a lot of movie friends. The three moms in the movie “Bad Moms” are my faves. Maybe I shouldn’t have brought up this subject. It’s making me crazy.
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Real is real, no matter what version of it.
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That makes complete sense to me. Peace out. 🙂
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What is ‘real’ really? I used to have a friend who cynically said his internet friends were just ‘pixels on a screen.’ I’ve had other internet friends I’ve met and enjoyed IRL (in real life.) You get out of your internet relationships what you put into them. The best part is that we have a whole world in which to find special people. How we see them says a lot about what they see in us.
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I couldn’t have said it better myself. In addition, I love talking to virtual friends from all parts of the world, just with the click of the “send” button. There’s so much we learn and experience from each other based on our various cultures and perspectives. By the way, I didn’t want to mention all this to the Cheshire Cat because I feared I’d overwhelm him. 🙂 Let him start small.
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Of course we’re real ! We’re ‘talking’ aren’t we? I’ve never had so many ‘real’ friends before as I do now 🙂
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Yeah, I think living proof is, when I don’t have access to the internet, I feel some kind of loss when I don’t have the opportunity to talk to you guys. Know what I mean?
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I do, most definitely!
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I’m glad I’m not the only one!
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Though we have never met in person, I definitely feel like a kindred spirit. I love your blog posts. I get them. 😊
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I get yours, too. I guess we’re both real. 🙂
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As real as it gets! One of my favorite quotes is “I love my computer because all my friends live in it”. I think, at times, we make a stronger connection to people we have never met in person. So yes, we appear, then disappear, but we’re only a click away. I like that. It’s how I found you! 🙂
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And it’s how I found you, too! I think the fact that we focus on exactly what we want to say to each other, without small talk or introductions, intensifies our friendships and makes them a bit different than the ones we have in person.
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Of course I am real Cathi ……am real ….am real….am Googly Googly *pop fizz zap* ❤
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I know you’re real! You always make me laugh, so you have to be! 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
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Yes, you found me out Cathi. I have double checked and I am real 🙂 ❤
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I know you might find this hard to believe, but I am real too. 🙂
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Sane as ever, Cathi
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Thank you for saying I’m sane. I never really know for sure. 🙂
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🙂
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We’re sharing a brain at the moment, Cathi, and you got the lion’s share! Stay tuned for a post on Profound Journey titled, “Can Someone You’ve Never Met Really Be Your Friend?” I’ve got the title, I’ve started writing, but it won’t be as imaginative or as heartwarming as your chat with the cat.
Thanks for the terrific post 🙂
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Karen, I am SURE your post will be fabulous and I can’t wait to read it. Now I’ll be on the lookout for it. I actually think the whole “virtual friend” topic has a lot to it and is worth exploring in many different ways.
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Did you ever watch Seinfeld? Do you remember Teri Hatcher’s line, “They’re real and they’re spectacular”? Yes, that’s us, Cathi!
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I love Seinfeld but don’t know that episode. I’ll try to find it on Youtube. We ARE spectacular!
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It was all about Tory Hatcher’s boobs in the show. You should check it out. Hilarious.
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I’m definitely going to look into it! Thanks!
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Not only are we real but we are free to reveal our inner most secrets along with our joys and sorrows. 🌹
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Yes! And we do get right to those inner secrets, joys and sorrows! Sometimes I’m grateful my closest friends and family members don’t read my blog. 🙂
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Always loved the Cheshire Cat and know that I know I´m a bit like in appearing and disappearing out of thin air I´m completely thrilled!! And I totally get the real thing – sometimes my friends here seem to be much more real to me than those in real life because here we share our thoughts and stuff that maybe sometime we don´t there. And like you I´m actually grateful they don´t read my blog!! Lol! 😀
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Hi Sarah! Like you, I’m kind of like the Cheshire Cat. In fact, I often have a feeling I was a cat in another life. I have a lot of cat traits in human form. But, my favorite Wonderland character is The Mad Hatter. Insanity rules.
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I also have a lot of cat traits in me. 😉 Much to the annoyance of everyone around me!
And I absolutely and totally agree that The Mad Hatter is the best (Wonderland) character and also my favorite in these tales!!
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And the Queen of Hearts kind of cracks me up. Her “off with her head” thing is kind of crazy.
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To be honest, there are times when I envy her. Like when I watch the news!
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Ha haaaaa!!!! The answer to all our problems is in Wonderland. 🙂
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I completely agree that there can be true friendships with people we’ve never actually met or spoken to, people we wouldn’t recognize if we encountered them on the street. Often they live half the world away, in countries we may never see. This is one of the upsides of technology. Friends are people who listen to us, who care what’s happening in our lives, who offer support and encouragement, who welcome our thoughts. Sometimes they tease us, or they respectfully disagree with us, or they help us take ourselves less seriously … or more seriously, if that’s what we need. I’ve found all of those things in the blogging community. While it’s a form of friendship that would have been unimaginable 30 years ago, I think it’s a welcome way of opening the world, and opening our eyes. Thanks for another great and thought-provoking post!
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I’m with you on everything you said (in your comment). I also love that blogs break down age boundaries. For example, there are people in their twenties and thirties who follow my blog and relate to my issues on different levels. It’s great to see the world through their eyes. I’m sure you must find the same thing with your blog.
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I’m as real as you are and just love the way you’re tackling our aging challenges 🙂
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And I’m so glad you’re part of my virtual community and “hear me.” It’s great to know we’re both not holograms (although that might be fun). 🙂
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It is odd how frankly we speak to people we’ve never even met on our blogs! But I think that is also a big part of what makes us so honest…we don’t feel prejudged, so we don’t have to “fix” anyone’s impression of us. And even though we may never look each other in the eye, I have to say that the support and encouragement I get from my blogging friends feels very, very real!
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Same here. And…I think it’s kind of magical the way we appear and disappear…and yet we’re always there.
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Reblogged this on yarn and pencil.
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OMG! I’m so honored and flattered. What a privilege to appear in your blog. You made my day. Even if I disappear, you’ll still be able to see my grin. 🙂
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Aww, you’re welcome 💟
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I adore the connections I have made here in the blogosphere…just today I felt the love and concern of a virtual “friend” come right through the computer….I love it!
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Yes, I know what you mean. The computer is like a medium for heartfelt thoughts.
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The band Jesus Jones asked a very similar question, “Do you feel real?” I love this post. I have wondered myself about the connections that I make on-line. It was so nice to hear that someone else thinks of the people that comment and are a part of their blogging community as friends. Because I do too. -Jill
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Hi Jill, I’m so glad you responded so honestly. I always know you’re there and I try my best to virtually let you know I support you and your fine work as well. This is a new form of friendship. I’m into it. 🙂
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I think you summed it up so well in your post. We can’t always be on-line. But I know that you and my other blog friends are there and I am here for you.
I thought it was so creative the way you used the Cheshire Cat. Great post.
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Thanks! It’s a lot of fun for me when my blogger friends are on the same page with my warped sense of humor. 🙂
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I totally agree. I love the way you said we appear and disappear. I feel like everyone here is a good friend.
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I feel everyone here is a good friend here too. I just get weirded out as soon as I flick off my screen. You know, this might be the beginning of a great script for a horror movie. LOL
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A great script for a movie, yes, but not a horror film. Maybe a personal improvement?
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Yup!
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In my experience, blogger or virtual friendships can develop into real ones. Over time I’ve eventually met people at events who I had only known digitally. When we meet in person, we already feel like we’ve known each other forever even though it was the first time we were physically meeting. It’s actually quite wonderful.
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Wow. Thanks for sharing that with me. I know there are blogger conventions around the world and I’ve read bloggers meet in person that way. I never thought about actually going, but now I can see how valuable and fun it can be. Or…I guess if we live in the same country, we can meet for coffee. 🙂
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Yeah! I can imagine this happening because of the way we communicate online. We get right to the point in a few sentences (in the comment section). We share our pain, or joy, our thoughts about life, and so much more, in shorthand. It can take years to do that in person with a new friend.
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As real as can be! Cogito ergo sum. Sometimes I feel like my virtual friends are more real than the people around me.
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Right. Also, the blogging community is a very supportive one. That’s not always true in the real world. Or…should I say…the non-virtual world. LOL
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I agree!😊
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Such wise words from the Cheshire cat!
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Ha ha! I suppose he’s wiser than the Mad Hatter.
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I too love my blogging friends-you are one of them. love Michele
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And, of course, you are one of my friends!
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This is fantastic and such brilliant words. I have added a lilac this week to my blog 🌞
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Hi Lisa! I just read your lilac post! I printed out your lilac and framed it. It’s now sitting with my plant and photo collection on a table with a lace cloth. Also, thank you for the shout out to my blog. My next post (coming out today or tomorrow) is about a conversation with a lilac. A shout out to your beautiful lilac illustration will be included at the end of the post. 🙂
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8 years ago I became blogging friends with a lady. We began to exchange holiday cards, write, email, share photos, video chat, as best friends over the years. Now we are engaged to be married! How real is that? Each of us was the first follower of the others blog.
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Awww. I LOVE that story! Well, that’s even more living proof no matter we live, we virtual friends are real. So nice to meet you!
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Pingback: CONVERSATION With…the Cheshire Cat From Wonderland…About Virtual Friendships in Older Age - Katzenworld
I hope you all have fun reading about one of the best cats in the world.
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Who cares? As long as you get what you want or need from us, that’s all that matters. Isn’t that really how Alice (or maybe Lewis Carroll) viewed the Cheshire Cat and most of the other characters she encountered in Wonderland? After all, it was through this series of encounters that the story was told, as I recall.
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That’s a very interesting perspective. I guess on some level I’m responding to the heartfelt humanity I receive in the comments and the sincerity I try to project when I comment on other blogs. It’s real, but then disappears when the computer is turned off. Although I guess it doesn’t really disappear. Thanks so much for sharing your insightful thoughts.
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