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I maintain the conviction that it is never too late to transform. I believe you truly can teach an old dog new tricks, as long as the mature being is willing and ready for growth. Provided that the old dog is ready to confess when it was mistaken, and endeavor to transform into a better dog.

OK yes, I am that seasoned creature. And the lesson I am trying to learn, even though I am a creature of habit? It is an significant challenge, an issue I have grappled with, often, for my all my days. The quest I'm on … to develop a calmer response toward the common huntsman. My regrets to all the remaining arachnid species that exist; I have to be grounded about my possible growth as a human. The target inevitably is the huntsman because it is sizeable, commanding, and the one I encounter most often. Encompassing three times in the previous seven days. In my own living space. Though unseen, but a shudder runs through me at the very thought as I type.

I doubt I’ll ever reach “enthusiast” status, but I've dedicated effort to at least becoming a baseline of normalcy about them.

I have been terrified of spiders from my earliest years (as opposed to other children who are fascinated by them). During my childhood, I had ample brothers around to ensure I never had to handle any directly, but I still became hysterical if one was clearly in the same room as me. One incident stands out of one morning when I was eight, my family still asleep, and attempting to manage a spider that had made its way onto the lounge-room wall. I “dealt” with it by standing incredibly far away, nearly crossing the threshold (in case it pursued me), and spraying a significant portion of pesticide toward it. It didn’t reach the spider, but it did reach and irritate everyone in my house.

In my adult life, whoever I was dating or living with was, as a matter of course, the bravest of spiders out of the two of us, and therefore in charge of handling the situation, while I made low keening sounds and fled the scene. If I was on my own, my tactic was simply to exit the space, turn off the light and try to forget about its being before I had to return.

Recently, I stayed at a companion's home where there was a notably big huntsman who lived in the casement, primarily hanging out. In order to be less scared of it, I conceptualized the spider as a 'girlie', a gal, one of us, just relaxing in the sun and listening to us gab. It sounds extremely dumb, but it worked (a little bit). Alternatively, making a conscious choice to become less phobic did the trick.

Regardless, I've made an effort to continue. I think about all the sensible justifications not to be scared. It is a fact that huntsman spiders won’t harm me. I recognize they prey upon things like buzzing nuisances (creatures I despise). I am cognizant they are one of the planet's marvelous, harmless-to-humans creatures.

Unfortunately, however, they do continue to walk like that. They travel in the deeply alarming and somehow offensive way imaginable. The appearance of their numerous appendages carrying them at that frightening pace causes my ancient psyche to kick into overdrive. They are said to only have a standard octet of limbs, but I am convinced that multiplies when they are in motion.

However it cannot be blamed on them that they have scary legs, and they have an equal entitlement to be where I am – possibly a greater claim. I’ve found that implementing the strategy of trying not to immediately exit my own skin and run away when I see one, attempting to stay composed and breathing steadily, and intentionally reflecting about their positive qualities, has actually started to help.

Just because they are hairy creatures that move hastily extremely quickly in a way that causes me nocturnal distress, doesn’t mean they warrant my loathing, or my shrieks of terror. I am willing to confess when fear has clouded my judgment and driven by irrational anxiety. I’m not sure I’ll ever attain the “catching one in a Tupperware container and taking it outside” level, but you never know. There’s a few years within this seasoned learner yet.