Book Image

Dainty Doilies

By Carmen
Lace fills the frame –
A tangle of tiny knots
Pressed against black paper.
Watching it, I think of
A spiderweb in moonlight.
How many hours spent,
And how many fouled knots –
Reworked by the busy spider –
Until the work was complete?
But no spider dwells here.
Why, then, spin the web?
Webs are formed to live in,
So what is its purpose?
The spider spins
And forms a thing of beauty.
Need there be a reason?
 

Comments

  1. Arachnids seldom give a reason why they spin their knots.
    Perhaps we simply need a wee Rosetta stone, a tool
    To render us the meanings of their motions, words or thoughts.
    (The famous Charlotte is a rare exception to this rule.)

    In absence of defining works to lay out all the facts,
    We needn’t rush to judgment. We must find a missing link.
    Meanwhile, make careful note that many spiders net their snacks
    In webs they spin by dint of reason or just by instinct.

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