I’d left the kids with him at the house. I wasn’t going to be long. I’d forgotten something and had to run and get it. When I returned with the thing (whatever it was) that I’d forgotten, my hands were full. I was carrying my jacket, a large bag, and the item in one hand, and struggled to open the door with my free hand. I was fumbling with the doorknob. Finally, I’d gotten the door to open, but I was concerned about it opening too far.
I hurried to enter, worried I’d taken too long. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a ginormous spider had come in when the door was ajar. They didn’t see the spider as it scurried along the floor at the base of the wall. Its two sets of legs were freakishly hairy. Three large hairy legs ran down each side of its body, and its underside had a cluster of six smaller hairy legs. It was large enough to make noise as it scampered, yet he didn’t seem to hear it at all.
I yelled to warn them. “You guys!! RUN! A spider got in! It’s huge! Run!!” I saw my kids jump. They didn’t turn to see the spider. They took my word for it and ran.
(Later, when retelling the dream, I described the spider as the size of one of those plastic Melitta coffee filters. It was “Twilight Zone” disgusting.)
Maybe he hadn’t heard me? Maybe he didn’t believe me? I yelled again as I ran toward him. “Really!! That spider is HUGE. You gotta run!”
As I came up beside him he got on the floor. He did the crab walk like we used to do in 4th grade gym class. He deliberately, without any regard for the spider, crab-walked across the room, IN THE DIRECTION OF THE SPIDER. I couldn’t believe my eyes. After my warnings and yelling and all the commotion, he actually got down on the spider’s level and moved toward it!
I could see that he was within a foot of the spider now! He could SEE the spider. What was he doing? I turned to run and join the kids. As I left the house, I looked over my shoulder and saw him pick up the spider, with both hands!
The next morning, as I poured a second cup, I told Jen of my wicked dream. When I described my astonishment at his picking up the spider, she interrupted me to say, “But, mom, you can’t save him.”