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I maintain the conviction that it is forever an option to transform. I believe you absolutely are able to instruct a veteran learner, provided that the experienced individual is willing and ready for growth. So long as the individual in question is prepared to acknowledge when it was in error, and strive to be a better dog.

OK yes, I am the old dog. And the trick I am attempting to master, despite the fact that I am decrepit? It is an major undertaking, something I have grappled with, often, for my all my days. I have been trying … to become less scared of the common huntsman. Pardon me, all the other spiders that exist; I have to be grounded about my capacity for development as a human. It also has to be the huntsman because it is large, commanding, and the one I run into regularly. Encompassing a trio of instances in the last week. Inside my home. You can’t see me, but I’m shaking my head with discomfort as I type.

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

I have been terrified of spiders dating back to my youth (as opposed to other children who find them delightful). In my formative years, I had ample brothers around to guarantee I never had to confront any myself, but I still became hysterical if one was visibly in the general area as me. One incident stands out of one morning when I was eight, my family slumbering on, and trying to deal with a spider that had made its way onto the lounge-room wall. I “managed” with it by retreating to a remote corner, nearly crossing the threshold (lest it pursued me), and spraying a significant portion of pesticide toward it. The spray failed to hit the spider, but it succeeded in affecting and annoy everyone in my house.

In my adult life, my romantic partner at the time or cohabiting with was, automatically, the most courageous of spiders in our pairing, and therefore in charge of handling the situation, while I emitted frightened noises and fled the scene. When finding myself alone, my method was simply to leave the room, turn off the light and try to forget about its presence before I had to return.

In a recent episode, I was a guest at a companion's home where there was a notably big huntsman who resided within the casement, primarily lingering. To be less fearful, I envisioned the spider as a female entity, a one of the girls, in our circle, just relaxing in the sun and eavesdropping on us yap. This may seem extremely dumb, but it worked (somewhat). Alternatively, making a conscious choice to become less scared proved successful.

Regardless, I've made an effort to continue. I contemplate all the sensible justifications not to be scared. I know huntsman spiders are not dangerous to humans. I understand they consume things like insect pests (creatures I despise). I know they are one of nature’s beautiful, non-threatening to people creatures.

Unfortunately, however, they do continue to scuttle like that. They propel themselves in the deeply alarming and borderline immoral way imaginable. The sight of their many legs transporting them at that alarming velocity causes my caveman brain to go into high alert. They ostensibly only have the typical arachnid arrangement, but I am convinced that triples when they get going.

However it is no fault of their own that they have scary legs, and they have just as much right to be where I am – if not more. I have discovered that implementing the strategy of making an effort to avoid immediately exit my own skin and flee when I see one, working to keep composed and breathing steadily, and deliberately thinking about their good points, has proven somewhat effective.

Just because they are furry beings that dart around with startling speed in a way that invades my dreams, doesn’t mean they merit my intense dislike, or my shrieks of terror. I am willing to confess when I’ve been wrong and fueled by baseless terror. I doubt I’ll ever reach the “catching one in a Tupperware container and relocating it outdoors” stage, but one can't be sure. A bit of time remains within this seasoned learner yet.