Charlotte’s Mediation Web

I have eleven jalousie windows in my upstairs enclosed sun room. This is where the Nordik Trak is set up and no, it has not become a clothes hanger! The machine faces the three east-facing windows and one morning while I was slogging away, I noticed a huge spider sitting in her web in the middle window. The sun was pouring in and illuminated her just so, capturing Charlotte (of course, what else could I have named her?) smack dab in the middle of her creation, legs extended soaking it all in. Life was good.

Each day, I looked to see if the web was still there and it was for a few more days. But one morning I noticed that the web was somewhat in disarray and Charlotte was busy spinning, spinning, spinning to reweave it. I finished my workout and didn’t give it much thought until the next day.

There it was again. Only this time it was rewoven on the upper right quadrant of the window, the remaining feathery silk from the original web, blowing gently in the morning breeze. For whatever reason, she shifted the web to adapt to some new accommodation. This particular morning after a heavy rain, dew droplets dappled her web, making it sparkle in the sun. It was just magnificent and there she sat, smack dab in the middle of her re-creation, legs extended, soaking it all in. Life was good again.

I wondered at this marvel and it occurred to me how often a mediation can mirror the same adaptations, readjustments and alterations to an original plan. Over the course of a mediation, a number of topics, issues and challenges are discussed and ultimately worked out. The beauty of mediation, as I’ve said so many times, is that it gives couples time to really think things through, make adjustments as they go so that by the time they complete the mediation, they have woven themselves a nice web, and are satisfied with the end result.

And like the web, the structure of the agreement is woven tightly enough to hold up to the storms of life, but flexible enough to also bend when necessary. I noticed that after Charlotte had spun in her new location, she seemed to have woven her web a little more tightly than the first time – fortified the fortress, so to speak. I thought – okay, this is good, she’s completed her work and is satisfied here. The same feeling couples have when a mediation concludes successfully!