Arachnophobia
A gasp and then a scream
As she effects her tip-toed retreat
Fleeing from an unwelcome invader
Of alleged enormous size
Occupying prime position
Within the wash-stand bowl
Gently closing the door
An entire room now out of bounds
Until the stranded menace can be dealt with
I pity this useful household predator
This insect-eating carnivore
Which sits quite still, waiting in the whiteness
Patient, brooding, trapped
Previously the hunter
Now perhaps the hunted
Legs akimbo, mandibles unmoving
Black body segments glistening
Spinnerets suspended
Its sticky silken ropes useless
In this unyielding ceramic prison
Unable to build a ladder
To climb out and live another day
Kill it! Kill
it! she cries from behind the door
Overcome by the irrational fear
Of a species she does not understand
Don’t let it
get away and hide somewhere
To emerge
beside me when I am not looking!
Emboldened by Marigolds
I catch it quickly in a glass
Causing an instant reaction
The sudden vibration detected
Eight legs scrambling at full speed
Before I let it disappear, unharmed
Beneath the skirting
I make noises with the window-catch
And tell her that I threw it out
Announcing the threat to be defused
The area swept, secured and checked
No further need for nightmares
Another arachnid Armageddon avoided
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