A couple days ago, I was walking with my grandma around the block and I noticed a bee caught in a spider’s web. Only one of its wings was stuck, but the collective force of its entire body and other wing flailing around helplessly was not enough to set it free. A short distance up the web, a giant red spider the size of my thumb was eyeing its prey. Nothing much ever happens on our walks so this might seem melodramatic, but the events that followed played out like a movie in my mind. We just stood and watched as the spider fatefully inched closer and closer to the bee. In an instant, the bee stopped moving and was entombed in a fine, silky bundle in preparation for the spider’s meal. Death. Nourishment.

I’ve killed a lot of insects in my life, but something about this experience was a lot different. Maybe it’s ok to just leave it at that. Either way, seeing it in person was intriguing to say the least.