When I was a kid growing up on the island, there was a point where we didn’t have a whole lot of technology. Television was a treat for us, and we were only allowed to watch it in the evenings when homework, and chores, were done. I have fond memories of sneaking into the living room with my brothers after our parents went to bed and watching tv while they were asleep. It was the same with video games. We were only allowed to play our beloved Nintendo during the summer and winter school breaks, and ONLY if our grades were good. I mean straight A good. If anyone got a B we would all be nervous wrecks, afraid to ask for permission because of the possible NO. In retrospect, it probably wasn’t as serious as we thought, but back then, it was terrifying. A school break without Nintendo!! When you hear about how “bright” we were as kids, it was partially because those A’s bought us quality time with Mario and his brother.
We spent a lot of time outside when we didn’t have access to technology. We played games and made crafts out of flowers and other natural stuff that would be lying around, we played hopscotch and skipped, we played hand-clapping games, and we, well, mostly my brothers, would go hiking through the bush. One other thing we did as kids was catch spiders.
We have tarantulas on our island, and growing up there were tarantula holes everywhere. They make their cozy little homes in the ground and come out at night to hunt for food. We have lots of little creatures that sting and bite, like scorpions, wasps, ants, and spiders, but aside from giving you a nasty sting, they are generally harmless. I guess our versions of these animals haven’t evolved to a point where they feel they need to kill us yet. They are just chilling out and enjoying the island life.
We always knew better than to provoke these animals into biting, but we didn’t fear for our lives when interacting with them. I had a pet snake as a kid, and one summer, my brothers had a tarantula pit. It was a wheelbarrow that they filled with dirt, to which they added maybe 5-10 tarantulas. They fed them with lizards and bugs they caught, and they watched them interact. Decades later, when my eldest had a science fair project on invertebrates, we thought it would be interesting for her to bring a live spider to school. It was an excellent project, and we kept Spidey as a pet. We fed him with bugs and roaches, he moulted a few times (amazing to watch), and he doubled in size in a year. When we tried to give him a new, bigger enclosure, he didn’t like it so we let him go.
Spiders can make fun and interesting pets, but like all animals, you have to be a responsible owner. I took my girls spider-catching again recently and we had a fun time. It was like fishing, we pulled them up and let them be, and the girls had an exciting time watching them crawl to their holes. I’m going to give you a crash course in spider catching. As I said, our tarantulas are not dangerous, so I don’t recommend anyone trying this if they are unsure of the spiders that they have in their area. Please do not try to mess with venomous creatures!!. Here is how we do it.
- Tie the head of spider grass into a ball. There are those strands of grass that look like they have a spider on top.
- Once you’ve tied it, push the head of the ball down a tarantula hole.
- Wiggle it, just a little bit, until you feel the spider start to grip onto it.
- Gently coax the spider out of the hole. You could jerk it out quickly, but that could end badly. I did that once; the spider landed on my cousin that was standing nearby 😫.
And that’s all! Observe it, but don’t try to touch or grab it. Just let it be and enjoy watching it crawl back to its home.
We all grow up differently and have different experiences. Yes, spider-catching seems crazy, but it was part of my childhood that I enjoyed. As crazy as your childhood games, memories, and experiences may have been, it’s always nice to share them with your children, once they aren’t dangerous (or illegal).
From Sandbabies to Snowbunnies. This is our Life. 