Devoted readers will recall the recent blog posting of May 21, in which we stumbled upon a nasty-looking beetle with an even nastier name: The Devil’s Coach-Horse!
“So what became of this fearsome beast?” some may ask.
The longer I held him captive in the Folgers coffee jar, the more clear the choice became—I would need to either permanently eliminate the vermin, or perform a “catch and release,” borrowing the vernacular of seasoned sport fishermen. Should I give this horrid bug the “thumbs down” and squash its worthless little life, or should it receive the “thumbs up” reprieve and let it enter a world of unexpected freedom?
The longer I studied him through the glass, the more I started to empathize with him. Those horrible mandibles—well, what else to eat with? Without braces on our teeth, many of us would resemble the grille of a 1953 DeSoto. And the nasty-smell producing anal gland and spray—I dare say I know some folks who don’t smell quite right either, but they don’t deserve squishing. Then there’s that scary scorpion-like tail! If I were so small, and my captor so big, I suppose I would also use any scare tactic I could conjure up.
I gave him a few drops of water, perhaps to see if he would drown, maybe to make him start moving again, and to my amazement, his head immediately lowered into the shimmering droplet, like a dog lapping out of its bowl. I could almost hear him slurp. My amazement turned into guilt. I had nearly let my captive, by now nearly a pet, suffer death by dehydration.
And that turned the tide. He was no longer an object of scorn and fear. He was more like me than I wanted to admit. I would have to let him go. A senseless massacre was averted because I had come to know him as more than a discardable object. If not a friend, at least he had become my neighbor. In my world and in my mind, I had just settled my own version of Middle East hostilities.
As I tipped the jar, and he gained his footing, I envisioned myself also being released, along with the Devil’s Coach-Horse–escaping death, and not taking another moment of life for granted.