In Which I Explain the Fat Spider
Catherine McGuire
Although I believe in my inalienable rights
as a property owner to allow any and all guests
at will, I am too often pressed to explain
why the tortoiseshell spider (long legs speckled
like amber combs) hangs upside down in thin air,
on an unseen web in the window by my washer.
Can’t say I missed it; can’t say it is too small
to bother about. This quiet lady, as long as my thumb,
hangs in perfect clarity as if seeking a spotlight.
Stone-calm, etched like an Egyptian cartouche,
she has been with me for months, asking nothing
but peace, and all the pantry flies I can feed her.
She teaches me idleness is not sin,
she shows me how to wait, poised, my nets cast,
my road chosen, my plans complete,
my entire focus – my life! – hanging in the balance.
Catherine McGuire is a writer and artist with a deep concern for our planet's future. She has five decades of published poetry, four poetry chapbooks, a full-length poetry book, Elegy for the 21st Century (FutureCycle Press), a SF novel, Lifeline and book of short stories, The Dream Hunt and Other Tales (Founders House Publishing). She shares her half acre in Sweet Home, Oregon with chickens, cats, a garden/orchard and bees. Find her at www.cathymcguire.com. Thank you for considering these.