SHORT GAITS WITH THREE SPIDERS BY MATT WELTER
climbing through the tall yew
I know how the hammock spider feels
balancing on random boughs
upright on the roots
slowly across driftwood tangles
I teeter like the comb-footed spider
using scantier limbs as I go
testing each, feeling for a snap
striding over cobbles and boulders
I touch the wolf spider’s cautious
strides, as she makes short gaits
over algae slick pebbles and sand
like all three, I am moving
but like so many hatchlings today
I am moving slowly, trying my steps
uncertain, afraid to fall
Related : Common Spiders Facts
