The Thing I Fear...

This tiny arachnid is the thing I fear the most...a scorpion.  The irony is I'm a Scorpio. 

Give me snakes, spiders or any numbers of creepy, scary things and I can handle it.  You can chase me across the state with one of these tiny things.

This one is one of our own, found in the rock garden.  Just a tiny thing but it's sting is equal to about eight wasps an exterminator told me one
                                                       time.

Through the years my family has been continually inspired to help me overcome my "irrational" fear of this tiny thing.  I have been given some unusual gifts like this paperweight from Arizona.

Beneath this glob of twenty-two year old hot glue lies a scorpion.  A gift to me from my daughters and nephew to help me with this fear.  The  glue was clear for years.

This tiny arachnid was captured by them in the middle of the night.  Knocked out with a cotton ball soaked in alcohol and carefully hot glued into a tea jar lid for my viewing pleasure.  I heard the screams and laughter in the late night but was too tired to investigate.  They were teens, I knew they were up to something but I had to sleep...deal with it in the morning.

Strange but I do think these sweet, thoughtful gifts have made me a tad more tolerant toward this little monster.

The origin of my fear...when I was three I stepped on one.  When I see one today the same pain from the first sting shoots from my foot to my hip.  I guess pain is long remembered.