I think my mantra for awhile is going to be:
The itsy, bitsy spider went up the water spout
Down came the rain and washed the spider out
Out came the sun and dried up all the rain
And the itsy bitsy spider went back to work again.
This is an example of one of those things you hear or see or experience over and over again as a child and then when you're exposed to it again as an adult you understand so much about it that you didn't before. Like my good friend Laura, whose mom confused her for years when she explained that the term "hooker" (they were watching Pretty Woman) meant coat hanger.
I used to think of this song as a sort of sad, creepy story about a spider that nearly drowned - now I realize its supposed to be about preserverance in the face of adversi - wait a minute! What the f is this stupid spider doing making his web in a flippin water spout? He's just gonna keep getting washed out again and again. I mean, who would build their home in the middle of a waterway with no real protection from damage?? It reminds me of that saying I hate: Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.
So, I guess this song is really about a crazy, mostly homeless spider... Ah well, I still like it. The message of optimism and persistence is still there, even if it is a kind of insane, hopeless persistence. Kind of like, cheer up everybody, your web will get built... until the next downpour :(
