When Fear Hangs in the Air

Arachnophobia spun a web of terror and laughs, reminding us all that sometimes, our greatest fears have the most legs.

Here is a whimsical little tale about coming full circle in life.

I used to be terrified of spiders—so much so that just the sight of one could make me faint, and even hearing the word was enough to send shivers down my spine. One night, after dressing up all my Barbies and brushing their hair, I was tidying up my room when I spotted something terrifying. A spider was resting on my lap. 

I was wearing a long white robe since it was winter in the southwest, where I was born and raised. My dad didn’t turn on the furnace until bedtime, so the nights were chilly. Thank goodness for that robe! Otherwise, the spider would’ve been crawling right on my skin! Still, I felt completely under attack. My screams reached my dad, who was in the living room, and he busted through my door, ready to save me. But once he saw I was alone with the spider, holding up my robe to avoid it, he couldn’t help but scold me for being so dramatic.