Spiders are venomous, can be huge, and may be in your house. It is also safe to say that most people would be assumed to be afraid of spiders–they can be scary creatures. Yet this does not stand for all people.

One of the people that is not afraid of spiders is Margaret Zachary, junior at Lakeridge High School.  

“I used to be really afraid of spiders, and I just started to watch all of these tarantula videos on Youtube. I found that I was really interested in them. I wasn’t really afraid of them, so much as I didn’t know so much about them. Fear of the unknown is why I was afraid of them. The more trancela videos I watched the more knowledgable I became, and the more I wanted to research them on my own. Then I decided I wanted one when I found the species that I wanted.”

The story goes–on how Margaret got into spiders–that one late night she Margaret a huge spider on the wall of her room. It was too late to wake up her parents. So she decided to capture it herself. Which sparked an idea into her head. Margaret realized that if she could capture this big spider all on her own, then maybe they weren’t that bad. That maybe spiders had something to offer.

This is a huge revelation. A lesson that can serve and apply to many fears in life. If only one could not only conquer their fears, but also embrace them. Realize that most fears truly are only “of the unknown” as Margaret put it. This is the essential basis for all fear. It is the worry of hurt and pain. It is the terror that you could be hurt.

While the possible may be true, there are also things to gain, which is exemplified by Margaret overcoming her fear of spiders. Now she loves spiders. Now she has a hobby that she loves.

We should take a lesson from Margaret.