The creepy crawlies that live in the woods

I'm sure most of you are shaking your head and thinking....Um, Kerri, what did you expect? You live in the South. Ha, ha!  Yes, I realize this.  But sometimes I have to write about it :-)  The funny thing?  Just the day before I was wishing that I only had to deal with my childhood fear....the spider!  I laugh about it now.  Goodness, if all I had to worry about (I'm talking about creepy crawlies, and not the more important things in life!) were some spiders, I would be doing a jig! 

The following day was Sunday.  After our fellowship lunch I usually take the boys outside to play.  This Sunday Jeremiah took them out.  We meet in the back of a warehouse of sorts, so the only thing outside is a big gravel parking lot and a very small perimeter of woods.  I think the woods are only 8 feet thick or so.  All the kiddos at church play in these woods.  This day Aubrey had fallen down.  Jeremiah went to help him up.  After he brushed him off and sent him on his way he noticed something move on the ground.  This 'something' had only been about 12 inches from the baby. And that something was a copper head! Yikes!!!  Jeremiah cleared the area, and then grabbed a stick to try to deal with the snake.  However, the snake got away. 

I guess there won't be any playing in the woods for a while.  Thankfully I've read up on copper heads.  And though, their first line of defense is to strike with an initial bite, that first bite does not give off enough venom to do serious harm. Don't get me wrong, it will hurt like the dickens, swell, and bruise and such, but generally speaking it doesn't kill.  I would be more worried about a black widow bite, as from what I've read that has more of a chance to go systemic, as opposed to the copper head's more local reaction.  Please note, this is based on what I've read, I've not experienced a bite from a snake, nor a black widow, and I'm sure every one's mileage varies :-)

Now, if only I had to just worry about those horrid house spiders that I would check under my bed, in my closet, behind the dresser each night as a child.  Sigh.