Sarah and the spider

This afternoon was a very emotional afternoon as our school held a memorial service for my labmate Sarah who was killed last month in a car crash.  As someone who is not very good at expressing emotions, I volunteered to coordinate and help with the service set-up rather than stand up in front of people and talk about what Sarah meant to me.

Before the event, I noticed a spider on the floor trying to hide away.  Knowing that the spider might get stepped on once the service starts and how Sarah was an advocate for the values of all life forms, no matter how big or small (Sarah once rescued a moth on a lake and waited for its wings to dry and fly away before she left), I think it was a sign and so I picked up the spider and brought it to my office (and later back home).

I took some photos of this orb-weaver spider (Family Araneidae) before letting it scurry away in the kitchen knowing there are critters in there (because the kitchen is not very well-kept by my fellow roommates).

In the service, the reverend and some friends told several meaningful verses from the Bible, our supervisors and others shared their memories of Sarah, and in the end Sarah's sister and husband shared some of Sarah's journals entries from her field season.  Overall, it was a beautiful and emotional service.

Rest in peace, Sarah.