cat who got the cream

"Keep it as a reminder that to be durable and perfect, to be in fact grown-up, is to be an object, an altar ... cherishable stuff. But really, it is so much better to sneeze and feel human. ...
Though I would never sell it -- because, well, I treasure it as a talisman blessed by a saint of sorts, and the occasions when one does not sacrifice a talisman are at least two: when you have nothing and when you have everything -- each is an abyss."
Answered Prayers, Truman Capote