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Judge Cato has a story for every occasion. It was as a law clerk to the judge that I first became acquainted with him and his life story. Watchingjudge Cato on the bench talking with lawyers, court personnel, and even defendants, he oftentimes told a little vignette from his life as a boy, a young lawyer, or as a new judge. These stories were not idle reminiscences but were illustrations of larger, more powerful points. The themes were varied but always ran along the same continuum: work hard, each of us has a destiny, expect the unexpected, never run from adversity, and perhaps most importantly-know thyself.
Born at in the end of the Great Depression, Judge Cato learned the value of hard work growing up in his father's nursery business in Decatur County, Georgia. Judge Cato worked several jobs paying his way through college, then graduate school, and ultimately law school at the University of Georgia. Not only did Judge Cato accomplish these educational milestones while working, he also did so while helping to provide for and raise a young family. Judge Cato is fond of saying that his father told him to get a job that was "nine to five" but that as a young lawyer he soon realized that...