Spider!

I dwell in the darkest corners of your room

and in the untidy recesses of your mind;

a symbol of fear -- tiny token of doom;

a reclusive, I’m elusive and not easy to find.

 

I sit in silence in my woven silk web and

muse at your silly human complexities --

‘til the rising moon summons you to your bed,

I’ll delve into my simplistic arachnidan fantasies.

 

I’ve studied your habits and learned them well.

I know the precise moment that you’ll fall asleep

by the times I watched as your chest rose and fell,

so I bide my time until your breathing is deep.

 

The clock on the wall strikes eleven, and then

it’s the wond’rous moment I’ve been waiting for

when I can leave my home and begin to descend

the eight foot length ‘tween the ceiling and floor.

 

‘Tis a shame I’ve no one to appreciate my

timing and skill – I skitter this way and that

in front of the door which I must hurry by

to avoid being seen by your big ugly cat.

 

Up the bedpost and to the top of the canopy,

I pause for a moment and admire my prize;

 moments from now I will be where I long to be,

delighting at the tickle from the lash of your eye.

 

‘Tis a dangerous game I play here each night,

when you consider our vast difference in size;

my life would cease with one swat born of fright, as

I know the very sight of me you greatly despise.

 

I hunker down close to your soft, warm skin

and brace myself, anticipating the excitement

that will ensue when I bite you again and again;

awakened, you’ll scream as I scram to the vent.

 

I laugh to myself while you fumble about and

then leap in great terror right out of your bed;

you toss sheets aside and dare me to come out

with no idea I’m hanging just over your head!

 

 

Author's Note

I am terrified of spiders, but I like to write about what I fear. This poem inspired me to host the "Phobia" contest for which I will ask entrants to do the same.

Reviews

[Candle in the wind]

Oops it sent a chill down my spine!These horrible creatures seem to be lurking everywhere.Its such a macabre vision to think of the spider sniggering at our complexities! A very powerful poem indeed.It is very visually evocative and picks at our anxieties and follies as well.

[ELii]

Love it. Love the witty side and balance of this poem. Love spiders, they are misunderstood mostly. Great write.

[Baby Boy]

LOL! I like this Miss Tania and it is very witty and I can't stand spiders myself! Well at least not the big furry ones! LOL! This is awesome gurl and it sounds like a fun contest that I'mma try and enter! I have so many phobias butg if I had to pick one it would be snakes! LOL! Don't tell anyone though! :) Great write sweetie and I enjoyed the read! One luv gurl!


-JC-

[Floating on the feather..]

Very unusual and very evocative.

You have played really well with the mind of a spider, looking at the prey wanting not to fall prey.
Deep thoughts.


Well i am not very scared of spiders but i dread the kind of skin problems you have when they lick you.

[Belinda Rice]

wow i hate spider very creepy but great write i like it alot but i sill hate spiders i run from those suckers lol i hope to see more of your writing

[James K. Blaylock]

I really enjoyed this wonderful piece. As I read it, I had that wickedly wondrous song Lullaby by The Cure playing in my head!

jkb

[Gary Alexander Azerier]

Very clever...very well done. Unique. Original! And...scary! I must have sifted through more than two dozen pieces before I fell upon yours...which carried me, rapt, straight through. Nifty web you wove yourself!
Some of the other stuff around here is abominable. I'm delighted to have discovered a writer. Bravo!
GA

[Rodwonder]

Aww great, now I have to sleep with this in my head! A spiders eye view of the small world it sees and feels and the fear it spreds. Love this... I often wonder what certain creatures really think of us silly humans and our ways. Its good...

[The Tao of Bri]

I like the playful tension! Super write!

[Marie]

Eww, eww, eww! Spiders creep me out, in a bad way. I'm not phobic, but might as well be. Great write!

[Lorraine Pearson]

This was a fun read! I'm pleased to see someone understanding the "plight" of the spider. I so wonder sometimes if it does like teasing the human. Lord knows there are plenty of em freaked out over the spider. LOL. The font you used look like spider foot prints...
~Lorraiyne