See that picture right over there? What’s your reaction? Are you thinking ‘Oooo, that’s so beautiful.’ or is your immediate reaction, ‘Omfg, where’s the spider!? KILL IT.’
Spiders have a pretty bad reputation, yet they’re also pretty magical.
Spiders are not as dangerous as they are portrayed in the media. Experts agree that spider bites cause an average of less than three deaths a year and those are usually from an allergic reaction to the venom and not the venom itself.
Dogs cause more deaths than spiders each year, yet rarely do we jump up on chairs, screaming, and wielding brooms when we see them.
Most spider bites cause the minor irritation of a bee sting or a mosquito bite. Even the bite of the black widow has a 1% mortality rate. With the progress made in anti-venom, spider bites are rarely deadly, although some can cause serious tissue damage. Spiders can be dangerous, yet so can all of earth’s creatures.
When Spider creeps into your life it’s worth noting that it means more than grabbing the nearest can of bug spray and a battle cry of “kiiiiiiiilllll iiiiiittt!”
Spiders are master weavers. Through out history this has linked them to weaving the threads of fate and creativity. Spider teaches us to maintain a balance between the past and the future. Everything you do now is being woven into the tapestry that is your life.
Spider teaches us to look at the bigger picture, not just what is happening right now. When we only focus on one part of an issue, and not everything surrounding it, we often miss a lot of the wisdom that is being taught to us.
If spider has come into your life you should think about the following: Is it time to start weaving your dreams into reality? Are you embracing your creativity? Do you feel as if you are stuck in a web? It is time to acknowledge that you are the weaver of your threads. You hold the power. You are the master of your own fate.
I loved this post. Particularly this line, "Spider teaches us to look at the bigger picture, not just what is happening right now. When we only focus on one part of an issue, and not everything surrounding it, we often miss a lot of the wisdom that is being taught to us." I'm one of those that strongly dislikes spiders, but I agree that they have a lot to teach us. I highly recommend watching 'Charlotte's Web' as a way to totally change your perspective on these fascinating creatures (as well as being a truly heart-warming film all round!) It perfectly illustrates the line quoted above. Charlotte helps everyone to stop focussing on one part of the issues and see Wilbur in a different light ;)
If I remember right from researching it, only a couple types of spiders are even actually poisonous. I've had two rose hair tarantulas before and it totally changed my feelings and thoughts on spiders. I used to be scared. I miss my little spiderlings.
This is true, and even the ones that are poisonous have anti-venom available at hospitals. The media really over plays their deadliness. I really enjoyed researching them.
Spiderlings! How sweet! :) I'm not sure I would want to own tarantulas but I'd definitely want to hold them, that would be so cool.
I didn't even think about connecting it to "Charlotte's Web" thank you for pointing it out! That's such a relevant connection.
Oh how I miss that movie! Childhood nostalgia. :)
I recently had a dream about spiders, so your post is very timely. And like Maria, I particularly liked the line "
Spider teaches us to look at the bigger picture, not just what is happening right now. When we only focus on one part of an issue, and not everything surrounding it, we often miss a lot of the wisdom that is being taught to us." Thank you for this reminder!
What a fascinating post, Dominee! I didn't know all of that information about spiders (and it does help my worries ease a bit about spider bites). I think spider webs can be lovely… but I'm not a huge fan of spiders themselves. I think their symbolism is very interesting, though. A Shamanic practitioner I work with sometimes told me this great story/analogy about spiders – I don't remember now exactly what he said (I need to track it down to remember all the details) but your post reminded me of that. :)
You're very welcome. I don't see spiders very often but when I do I get that little feeling that it's time to stop, slow down, and pay attention to what's going on! Dreams about spiders can be very telling too.
I was actually quite surprised in my research as well. I think I still have memories in my head from the movie Arachnophobia! They do make very good movie monsters though. Native Americans have some really great spider myths and they inspired dreamcatchers! I need to try to make one some day, they're beautiful.