Tag: scorpion

The Scorpion

November 17, 2024

Ah, the scorpion as rendered by my talented sister Cynthia Dillon. Poor creature, it does not enjoy good fame. It has always been maligned, but, as the story goes, he can’t help himself. It stung the frog because it was his nature. The Smithsonian has a charming tango between 2 scorpions engaging in a mating ritual. Fun to watch.

However, some female scorpions will give the macho tango dancer a final coup de grâce, so to speak. Which brings to mind a few not-so-nice references to the arachnid:

Macbeth’s “O, full of scorpions is my mind, dear wife…” and Percy Bysshe Shelley’s “Falsehood is a scorpion that will sting itself to death.” 

THE SCORPION, by Hilaire Belloc

The Scorpion is as black as soot,
He dearly loves to bite;
He is a most unpleasant brute
To find in bed at night.
THE SCORPION, by Roald Dahl

...The scorpion's name is Stingaling,
A most repulsive ugly thing,
And I would never recommend
That you should treat him as a friend...

Shedding Mortal Coils

October 9, 2024

I have a transparent snake’s skin that someone found walking around the fields in Maine. He gave it to me and I saved it, thinking one day my baby grandchildren would find that exoskeleton fascinating. The other day I found a faded photo of the critter. And it made me wonder…

Fast forward to this summer: I discovered an old curiosity I had gifted one of my nephews. I should have kept it for myself, since I am a Scorpio! I remember how thrilled I was to find a creepy crawly immortally entombed in plastic at a tired old “store” at a US Government compound in Kabul. What are aunts for if not to do wacky things for their nephews and nieces?

I also just discovered that scorpions, like snakes, shed their mortal coils, as Hamlet would eloquently state. Sometimes, I wish I could do the same.