If you spend enough time next to a slow moving creek or calm pond, you are likely to see long-legged bugs skimming across the water, darting here and there remarkably quickly. These bugs are called water striders, though they also go by other names: pond skaters, water bugs, skimmers, and water skippers. They have the incredible ability to "walk" on water. The secret to the water strider is its legs. They have long, slender legs that allow them to distribute their weight over a much larger surface area. The legs also have tiny hairs that repel water and capture air. By repelling water, the tiny water striders stand on the water's surface and the captured air allows them to float and move easily. Their front legs are for catching prey, the middle legs are used for rowing, while the back legs are used for steering.
In the breeding season, these bugs communicate by sending ripples to each other on the surface of the water. They can sense vibrations and ripples in the water with the sensitive hairs on their legs and bodies. If an insect accidentally falls into the water, the ripples it makes will tell the pond strider exactly where it is. Water striders eat insects and larvae, such as mosquitoes, flies, caterpillars, and fallen dragonflies.
Learning about the water strider's method of communication reminds me of our influence in this world. Our every action creates a ripple, whether it's the things we do, the words we say, the looks we flash, the moods we get into, the attitudes we give... each is a ripple. We can't control the fact that we cause a ripple, nor can we stop it once it has been created, but we can control whether the ripple is positive or negative.
"Throw a pebble into a lake, and a wave is formed, and another and another, and as they increase, the circle widens, until it reaches the very shore. So with our influence. Beyond our knowledge or control it tells upon others in blessing or in cursing." Christ's Object Lessons p.340
No comments:
Post a Comment