Nov. 17th:

I removed a pile of envelopes from my mailbox today and noticed
a big, brown, hairy spider standing motionless on the top piece of mail. Shrieking
(because I hate spiders) I dumped everything onto the ground and then—with a
thick envelope advertising 0% on a new credit card—I swatted at where the
spider had landed. You might be wondering if today I am grateful for
no-interest credit card offers (as if there’s never a catch) but no. The nasty spider
got me thinking….

Strangely, I’m not afraid of grasshoppers, crickets, tree frogs,
or mantises that are found in abundance where I live. Nope, I just hate
spiders. I neither appreciate their purpose nor understand why they were
designed to look so creepy. *shuddering* Nonetheless, I have a friend who is in
fact fascinated by spiders: their hunting methods, routine habits, and the
geometric design of their webs. So, while I freak out at the sight of eight long,
hairy legs, spiders genuinely capture my friend’s interest. (Go figure.)

Now, this got me thinking about how vast the variety of life is
on the Earth. Did you know there are over 8,700,000 species of animals in the
world? Over 34,000 recognized species of fish, over 17,500 species of
butterflies, over 10,000 species of birds, over 9,000 different insects, and over
45,000 kinds of spiders! (That’s a lot of creepy crawlers.)

My point is that nature gifts us a wealth of variety in life—in lifeforms.
The world is a colorful, stunning place because of it. Among human life the
same thing is true: we are more beautiful because of the variety that exists in
our appearances, cultures, talents, and unique personalities. Variety is a tremendous
blessing. Differences are glorious. I am thankful today to have recognized this
truth.

Author's Blogspot: https://regoodrichnews.blogspot.com/2...