My Window Friend

I have been afraid of spiders all of my life.  And, when I am fast enough, I erase them from earthly existence with whatever swift method I can utilize at the moment; the flat sole of a shoe typically being the most potent and reliable.  Recently, however, I have allowed one to grace the living space between my bathroom window and the screen.  I don't really know why, except that for some strange reason I feel like I am in control of this one particular arachnid.

I first noticed my little friend about three weeks ago when I observed the 'annoying' appearance of a web right outside my window.  So I reached out one day with a paper towel to swipe away the web and was startled by the sudden movement of my eight legged friend as she scampered to safety in the recesses of the window frame.  At the time, I chuckled to myself thinking I had chased her away by destroying the web.  Imagine my surprise when I discovered a complete return of the structure the very next day.  And so it began - this little 'relationship' between me and the spider.

So each day I check to see if she's still there, and she is - perched upon an ever thickening web of silk softly and deftly woven and attached between the two surfaces.  I play this little game each morning when I greet her - mostly to see just how quick she still is after all these days by ever so quickly cracking and slamming the window - just to remind her who's in charge.  Without fail, she scampers to her safe spot somewhere in the recesses of the window.  And I smugly remain in charge for one more day.

I never have known just how long a spider can live - and so as I experiment with this one, I am wondering about and observing a number of things.  1.  Spiders don't seem to move much.  She seems to be in the same place every single day without fail.  I wonder what she is waiting for.  More importantly, I wonder what her little spider brain thinks about all day long.  2.  She must not have much of an appetite.  I don't know about her, but I couldn't stay in one place without eating - I have never seen anything larger than a dot in her web - which leads me to think she is waiting for something bigger; for what, I don't know.  3.  She must be bored to death.  What on earth could she be doing all day and night long in that same spot?  Whatever it is, it certainly is a mystery.

What I do know about her is that she waits.  She waits a lot.  And from that I could learn some patience.  I see a demonstration of it every day in my little eight legged friend.  I am glad I am watching.

October 9, 2010
My little friend...I have named her Charlotte (after E.B. White's famous character) is still hanging around the web in my window.  The web has grown thicker over time and there seems to be more
'litter' in the web.  Charlotte does not move as quickly as she did in previous weeks if I slam the window...perhaps owing to the trust being developed in our relationship??  I doubt that actually.  Somehow I do not believe Charlotte or any other arachnid is capable of such feelings (as I have projected my own upon her) yet she seems wiser, more settled, somehow in charge of her domain - that silky, soft, tuft of web still suspended between the window and the screen.


I am still glad to be watching.