One evening before dusk, I was alone and bored, very tired of my normal routines; but my mind kept me busy thinking about things I needed to think about. From thought to thought I thought, till thinking became tiring for me; then I decided that I needed a distraction that will help me with these decisions. Something unusual came to my mind, so unusual but not unworthy. I acted without asking; immediately, I embarked on rapid curbing of spiders’ webs in and out of my entire house. I lived alone, on a low-key, in a big bungalow with seven cats; if I didn’t do it, nobody would, so I began doing it. While I was busy curbing the webs, I killed many spiders too; because it was wise to tackle problems from the root. Thus, from roof to roof, corner to corner, I curbed and killed; till something unusual happened. What happened?
A spider spoke. I couldn’t believe my ears nor my eyes, but I saw and heard a spider speak. It was so unbelievable; thank God I was off weeds for weeks; and the only alcohol I took that day was water. So, I don’t expect you to believe me, because I doubt myself sometimes too; but the intriguing and the interesting parts of this unusual revelation lies in the spiders’ speeches. Hope you noticed the plurals? Read the last sentence before the question again. Not one, not two, not three, but four elderly spiders spoke to me that evening before dusk. The Arachnid Apostles preached to me; although they failed in converting me; yet, I learnt a lot from the sermon they served. Words of wisdom from the mouths of four big spiders; each spider occupied its own web in different four corners of the fourth room I entered. Interestingly, it was intriguing that each giant spider had its own space, and they spoke in turns in the directions I turned; thus, I hesitated and listened as I also watched; and these are the inspirations I got from the spiders...
“You humans are wicked,” the first spider I turned to kill said; “always destroying the efforts of others, both of humans and animals.” I was startled by that speech, I stopped before I could start; then, I asked the spider to explain further so that I can comprehend better. Judging from his looks, he looked like a knight, and he shined in his dark armor; full of confidence and fearless. He knew that his death was imminent, but it didn’t stop him from saying his truth; so he continued: “Yes, you are the Lord of this house, but we the spiders are not your tenants, for just like you, we built our own houses; the earth is too big for one group to own; what good will it do you that you destroyed what you didn’t build? Did you take time to consider the efforts and time it took us to web these webs that you are destroying effortlessly? You not only destroy what we built, but you destroy us as well; such that I wonder how inhuman you human must be.” Before I could interrupt him, he added a question that threw me off balance; he asked, “Don’t you care about the things that others care about?” then, he gave me a quizzical sneer.
I stood motionless and speechless; at the same time, I felt my emotionless feelings fading, as I began to feel guilty for the innocent spiders I already killed and those I killed in the past. Shame washed over me, and I watched over myself with shame; what shambles have I done? I reasoned. But I am cleaning and clearing my spaces as I should, just like everyone else does in their different houses; why would mine be different? “Why should I listen to this stupid spider?” I wondered if I wasn’t the one stupid. Yes, I must be stupid for listening to a spider; I thought. Before I was done with processing my rapid thoughts, I heard the spider in the second corner cough; so, I turned quickly to tune in. There he was, hanging righteously like Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary. From his pious looks, he looked like a priest. In fact, he was more decorated than an ordinary priest; he was more like a bishop, with a tiny purple papal cap on his head. I went closer to get a better clue; who is this coughing spider? I imagined. So, a spider can cough too? I felt trapped in a trance. While I drew closer, the spider was busy adjusting his stance till he gained balance; then, he posited piously like a preacher…
“Brethren, in the end, God will judge all lives for the lives they ended without God’s permission; damnation awaits all who condemned and never condoned.” The spider spoke with authority; and I immediately grasped I was listening to a Bishop. He continued “when you destroy our webs, you break the connections, roads, routes, and channels through which we communicate with each other in our community; you live us without foods, shelters, protection and peace; because of you, many parishioners perish in poverty; that is for those that survives your scourges.” He stopped to cough again; this time, the cough was louder, as if his words were choking him. He looked like someone who had a lot to say, but knew that his words won’t be enough to save spiders; so, he stopped to speak, so as to save himself. He spoke in parables, and I wasn’t prepared to understand his speech; because I hated how he prided himself before me. He spoke as if spiders were righteous, while we humans were unrighteous; so much audacity coming from a local spider. So, I raised my broom to smash his prideful head against the wall, but a feminine voice distorted my violence; and like a queen, her voice was loving to listen to. Yes, this is the queen, I had no doubt about it; and when I turned in the direction of the voice, I found myself gazing at her magnificence. The most beautiful spider my eyes have ever seen; she laid majestically on her royal webs that shined like a rainbow. The softness of her voice, and her majestic pose, allured me to position well and hear what she had to posit; and I was not surprised with how majestically she started her speech…
“Destruction and death shall fall upon all who lives, both humans and animals; for we exist to also exit. Extinction is inevitable, just only a matter of time, and everyone shall fade with the tide. Now, you care so much about what you have; but what you have won’t care about you when you’re gone.” Her speech was so touching, such that it lit the torch of my soul; and I felt like extending my hands to touch her sympathetically. So much care for a spider because of her speech and how she spoke; I wanted to promise her that no harm will come upon her and her subjects, but I refrained myself from lying to a spider; I couldn’t let myself be crueler than I already was. Honestly, I wanted to cut a deal with her, to establish an everlasting peace between her and myself; but she was not the king. I wanted to assure her that as long as spiders stay off my premises, I will spare them and won’t hurt spiders anymore. Because of my plan and pity, I withheld my promise till I heard what the fourth spider had to say. I wanted to hear them all, before I can say all I wanted to say; so, I didn’t wait for the fourth spider to surprise me before I surprised him. “His Royal Highness Sir, what is your say on this matter,” I turned to face him squarely as I asked for the last opinion. King recognize king; I knew him from the smell of his bravery. He hesitated for a moment, and pretended not to be a talking spider; such that I imagined if it was reasonable to reason with someone that cannot be reasoned with. On a second thought, I felt his arrogance and anger for the calamities I have done and still doing to his community; but I didn’t give a damn about him. I already made up my mind that if he remains silent, I was going to smash his arrogant head to pieces. Just before that; as if he could hear my thoughts, he spoke before I could strike…
“My Lord,” he said; “you already know what I am about to say, because it is not different from what others have said; but I know that you want to hear me speak, so I must speak.” The surprising salutation shocked me, I must confess; his adoration ignited admiration for him, from me. My temper was calm, my head was cool and my gaze fixed; as I listened to the King’s Speech. Royalties and dramatic royal entrances; before he continued, he released himself from his web and drew closer to me, holding a single string; that was stylish and elegant as I remembered. Moreover, it was not his acrobatics that distinguished him, but his words; for he spoke like a true king…
“People care less or nothing, about people that people kill; in as much as it’s not their people.” The king spider posited. I could swear that this sentence sunk into my soul, but why I should I swear over what a spider said? After all, he was just a spider, and knew nothing about people. His words quickly interrupted my wandering thoughts, for I was almost lost in my thoughts; thus, I gained composure and continued to listen, as he continued with his speech: “The Arachnid empire of spiders have suffered for ages, unmerited and unwarranted sufferings in the hands of humans like you; we have been displaced and destroyed severally, yet we always resurface, because death can never be our end; we die as we are born, and we are born again to die again. We are endless, and no matter how many times you humans try, we will always regenerate our generations. We always build, and you always destroy; thus, your purpose gives us purpose too; for we will never stop to build as long as you keep destroying. You humans are always quick to curb our webs, without appreciating the masterminds, behind the glamorous designs you all destroy; what good shall it profit a man that ruins the efforts of others?” I pretended not to have heard that rhetorical question, as he pretended not to care, but continued with his farewell speech. Then, I felt that he knew I was going to kill him immediately after his speech, so he didn’t waste time with his words; but let them gush out gently like water from a rock. “I am finished, you can finish us now.” That was his last words. As I deliberated on what to say or do, one of my cats meowed; and I woke up immediately from where I laid exhaustingly on the cushion sleeping. I had slept off amidst my thoughts, and the spiders spoke in my sleep; for I woke up and saw no spiders up. It must be a dream; of course, it was a dream. Nonetheless, the spiders’ speeches were insightful; for I was inspired.
Dearly Beloved; this story is not about spiders, but about our societies… But, be patient like a spider, and persevere like a praying mantis; because speedy wrestling and speedy fall goes hand in hand. A spider sits patiently in his web and waits for preys, with his skills intact; just as the praying mantis is never tired of waiting. This life is cruise; if you rush it so much, you will lose so much. Remember, be prayerful, be patient, persevere, persist and never stop pushing; till you pull up in a private jet from the moon.