Reflections On The Shower (AKA: The Spider Lives)
I was in the shower this morning and something happened to make me stop and think. (Sorry if it disappoints you, but this is not THAT kind of story)
Shortly after I got in I noticed movement along the wall of the shower and turned to see a very small spider trying to make its way to anywhere that wasn't where it was. I don't know if you have ever been a spider on the wall of a shower, but if you have you know that the water spraying on the wall you are trying to walk on can be deadly.
I realized that this spider didn't stand a chance of getting to safety given its position and the spray of the water, so I shifted my own position to block the water and give it a fighting chance. I would have liked to have just moved it, but it was a tiny spider, and the circumstances led to the probability that I would end up killing it in the attempt.
So here I stood in the shower, acting as a guard for this little spider as it worked on moving back to safety. I held my ground as it slowly made its way, my heart sinking just a little bit every time it slipped and rising just a little as it recovered. I was seriously rooting this spider on.
Then it stopped. In a position along the side of the soap tray it just stopped and held its ground. I watched it unmoving as it stayed right where it was. I realized that if I moved it was still very much in the danger zone. I almost willed it to slip as it was on a jutting surface and would thus allow me to grab the web it hung by to move it to safety.
As I tried to will it to move I tried mapping out any of the best routes for it to take and that is when it hit me. It had two choices. Retreat into the dangerous area from which it came, or move forward. Retreat made no sense, it was trying to get back to its web. Moving forward was impossible. Why? Because where I stood caused the water to spray off of me onto the path it needed to take.
While my standing there had given it an opportunity for survival, now I was standing there too long. I needed to move now to allow it to continue to safety. I did, and it did.
Then I just reflected on this scene, seeing it as an allegory for my life. I have spent much of it in a "danger zone" where the slightest misstep would have me swept away. I have survived because others have stepped in and stemmed that flow.
The problem is that I find myself mixing the metaphor here. Because I am certain it is I who stand in my way, not any of those who have helped me get to where I am. I just need to figure out how and when to get out of my own way. Too soon and I get swept away. Too late and I spend a lot more time sniffing the soap than I need to.
Just some wet reflections on life, or something close to it.
Shortly after I got in I noticed movement along the wall of the shower and turned to see a very small spider trying to make its way to anywhere that wasn't where it was. I don't know if you have ever been a spider on the wall of a shower, but if you have you know that the water spraying on the wall you are trying to walk on can be deadly.
I realized that this spider didn't stand a chance of getting to safety given its position and the spray of the water, so I shifted my own position to block the water and give it a fighting chance. I would have liked to have just moved it, but it was a tiny spider, and the circumstances led to the probability that I would end up killing it in the attempt.
So here I stood in the shower, acting as a guard for this little spider as it worked on moving back to safety. I held my ground as it slowly made its way, my heart sinking just a little bit every time it slipped and rising just a little as it recovered. I was seriously rooting this spider on.
Then it stopped. In a position along the side of the soap tray it just stopped and held its ground. I watched it unmoving as it stayed right where it was. I realized that if I moved it was still very much in the danger zone. I almost willed it to slip as it was on a jutting surface and would thus allow me to grab the web it hung by to move it to safety.
As I tried to will it to move I tried mapping out any of the best routes for it to take and that is when it hit me. It had two choices. Retreat into the dangerous area from which it came, or move forward. Retreat made no sense, it was trying to get back to its web. Moving forward was impossible. Why? Because where I stood caused the water to spray off of me onto the path it needed to take.
While my standing there had given it an opportunity for survival, now I was standing there too long. I needed to move now to allow it to continue to safety. I did, and it did.
Then I just reflected on this scene, seeing it as an allegory for my life. I have spent much of it in a "danger zone" where the slightest misstep would have me swept away. I have survived because others have stepped in and stemmed that flow.
The problem is that I find myself mixing the metaphor here. Because I am certain it is I who stand in my way, not any of those who have helped me get to where I am. I just need to figure out how and when to get out of my own way. Too soon and I get swept away. Too late and I spend a lot more time sniffing the soap than I need to.
Just some wet reflections on life, or something close to it.
Labels: self examination, shower, spider
posted by Wanderer at 3:23 AM
1 Comments:
I was debating whether or not to give you the serious, frank, and possibly constructive if negative answer, which I certainly know, and I determined that this certainly isn't the forum for it in either case.
If you ever want to know what I think, ask me next time we're in the car or somesuch. I'll forget about this comment either way, so if you don't want to hear what I think, don't ask and it'll never occur to me.
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