The Death of Happy Spider

Back when Baby Bro wasn’t quite old enough to play, we heard endless tales of Happy Spider and his adventures. Big Bro’s spider showed up a couple years ago on a Sunday morning. Drew and I looked around nervously at first, before realizing that Happy Spider wasn’t the kind of spider that we could see, even though he was allegedly black with skinny legs and about the size of a 3-year-old’s hand.

Happy spider lived in the closet with his mom, dad, and baby brother. He was a pilot, a student, and for some reason he took a lot of vacations. Sometimes I overheard one-sided conversations with him while Big Bro played in his room. Sometimes he joined us on our outings. Sometimes when I asked about him, it turned out to be a silly thing to ask because of course he was off in San Diego, flying his plane.

I pictured Happy Spider with a tiny suitcase and maybe a pair of aviators. His house was real, we made it out of foam pieces and placed it on a shelf in the closet. He even had a tiny desk at my office, as my coworkers played along. I loved hearing all about Happy Spider, but I haven’t heard anything about him lately. In fact, he hasn’t been a topic of conversation for about six months.

I can only assume that Happy Spider, being a spider after all, met his fate after a long and exciting spider life. If it was a case of foul play, I would suspect Baby Bro. Happy Spider’s disappearance around the same time Baby Bro started to play independently with his older brother was no coincidence.

Either way, there seem to be no hard feelings of loss or grief at the absence of Happy Spider in our home. If anything, Drew is probably relieved.

I guess when it comes to playmates, not even an invisible spider can measure up to the love and friendship of a brother. Rest in Peace, Happy Spider. You're with Bing Bong now.