I’m not afraid of spiders –

Maybe because they are so manipulative

and beguiling –

Maybe because of their silken webs –

Or because they are vulnerable if you stick

your finger through their webs and they

swing away on a string and fold themselves into a ball.

But there was once a very large white spider

that intrigued me so much, and I got so close to it

and touched its body,

and I felt something pinch my pinky.

“Welcome to my web,

said the spider to the fly.”