Ever heard of a spider that couldn’t spin a web?
Once upon a time lived a spider that could not spin a web.
It’s hard to believe that there was ever such a spider, isn’t it?
“C’mon, a spider that couldn’t spin a web?” you must be thinking to yourself. “Spiders do that kind of instinctively, right?” Probably. But since we mostly don’t pay attention to spiders when they are spinning their webs (like any other kind of hard work it is mostly done in private), I am not sure how they get to be so good at it. Maybe they are hard-wired for it. Maybe they practice a lot. Maybe it’s the combination of the two.
Unlike spiders, we are hard-wired for remarkably few things. But that is a good thing. To be human is to be relatively free of hard-wired instinctual reactions. Instead, we are blessed with a real gem: an incredible ability to write our own ticket through hard work and imagination.
Jun 9, 2013
P.S. There is a story, a legend actually about King Robert Bruce of Scotland who witnessed a spider which was repeatedly trying and failing to spin a web. The spider finally managed to build a web and the King walked away from the experience with a lesson: “If at first you don’t succeed, try again!” Please don’t take this last point lightly.