Ithought it was just a harmless scrap on the floor. Then it moved. My stomach dropped, my skin went cold, ‘and suddenly my own home didrit feel safe anymore. What lay there wasnit a toy or a leaf, but a living. venomous creature that could have sent me straight to the emergen... Continues...
It took only a second for curiosity to tum into terror. That tiny, perfect green “leaf” with plastic-looking horns was actually a saddleback caterpillar, one of the most deceptively dangerous litle creatures you can find indoors. | had almost picked it up with my bare hand, thinking | was just cleaning a bit of plant debris off the floor. Only later did | learn that its spines are loaded with venom powerful enough to cause searing pain, swelling, blisters, and symptoms that send many people to the hospital.
Instead, | backed away, grabbed a jar, and coaxed it inside with something long and safe. After releasing it far outin the garden, the reality hit me: one careless touch, and my day could have tumed into a medical ‘emergency. Now, every time | see something strange on the floor, | pause. 1 look closer. And | remember how close | came to learning that lesson the hard way.