God’s Small World
God made a tiny, shiny world In blades of grass and flowers,
Where crickets creep and spiders spin And dewdrops fall in showers.
And in this small, this crawly world Are secrets and surprises.
The caterpillars creeping here Wear summertime disguises.
No one but God could think of it; I don’t know how or why
The caterpillar soon becomes A lovely butterfly.
–Blanche Day Manos
I wrote that short poem a long time ago for a children’s magazine. Children have a way of noticing small things. Maybe that’s because they are a lot closer to the ground than we adults are. When my son was little, he amazed me at the number of interesting things he found between house and car when we started to go somewhere. A pretty rock, an ant, a spider; he noticed them all. And of course, I had to come and admire his discovery. So several minutes passed between going out of the house and getting into the car. It is a pity we adults don’t find such pleasure in the small world that God put at our feet.
“And God made…every thing that creepeth upon the earth” (Genesis 1:25). To really appreciate those little creeping things, we have to get down close to the earth and look for them. Of course when some of the fascinating insects mistake our vegetables and flowers for a feast spread especially for them, the conflict starts. The trouble is when we resort to chemical warfare, casualties include those 6-legged helpers like ladybugs and bees. So I generally try to discourage the troublemakers with non-toxic remedies.
Insects exist in their own worlds. I’ve often wondered how they view us humans, or if they view us at all. They probably can’t see us entirely, maybe just a hand or finger or a foot. They have lots of things to teach us: staying busy, caring for their babies (okay, larvae), weaving beautiful creations that are as fragile as they are lovely. “The spider taketh hold with her hands, and is in kings’ palaces” (Proverbs 30:28). The splendor of early morning dew sparkling on a spider web rivals that of rubies and emeralds.
The enjoyment I get from my flowers is in direct relation to the amount of work I put into caring for them. I have a feeling that as the season progresses and the sun gets hotter, I will need to remember another verse from the Book of Proverbs: “Go to the ant, thou sluggard, consider her ways, and be wise.” King Solomon had a dim view of laziness. And I’d hate to be grouped with sluggards!
God’s world, whether it is the small world of insects and flowers or the large world of trees, mountains, people and sunsets, is fascinating, beautiful, and intricate. Everything is balanced. Everything works in accordance with a master plan. I don’t know how it works; that is a mystery known only to my Creator.
All I know is that God made it and it is good. I also know that God has a sense of humor. As I began writing this post about insects, for the first time ever, a small six-legged creature whose origin I do not know, crawled across my computer screen. Was it a coincidence? That too is a mystery.
I always thought the verse about spiders being in a kings palace was more about how things really are more equal than the mighty (rich and powerful) might like to think. Even kings have spiders. You really should have mentioned that your habit is to gently convey any spiders you find in your domain back out doors to their own domain!!
Spiders are fascinating little creatures. Their faces leave somewhat to be desired due to their having more than two eyes and some serious-looking fangs. But, all-in-all, I’d say they are superlative weavers.
It’s funny that Sara and Nathan don’t like bugs at all. One of my favorite memories of Sara when she was only a few years old is the time that we pointed out some bug crawling across the porch and told her to go look at it, thinking she would be interested. She squashed it flat, then leaned over to peer intently at the poor critter.
Yep, my little grands are not too thrilled with the insect population. They have distinctive shrieks when they find a spider. Probably scares the poor arachnid more than the spider scared the children!
A reminder of my grandsons in Texas we recently babysit…..lined up on the sidewalk watching ants. Then turning over all the pavers bordering the flower beds looking for roly poly….
Isn’t that neat, Carolyn, how children are fascinated by the most simple things. I wish we could all keep a child’s wonder and excitement. Those roly polies are pretty neat critters.