‘I fear I will pass on my fear of dragonflies to my children’

They can be beautiful and do nothing, but Sabine finds dragonflies to scare.

Sabine (37), mother of two sons aged 6 and 3:

“No one understands my fear. Everyone says that dragonflies are beautiful and do nothing. It doesn’t help, I find them creepy. It originated about seven years ago, while on holiday in Portugal. I saw all kinds of scary, large, flying animals above a water and asked my friend what they were. I had never seen a dragonfly at that time, of course I saw them all the time after that.

Also read – ‘My daughter refused to pee all holiday because there was a spider’ >

convey fear

We now live on the water, so they regularly fly through the garden. Then I run screaming inside. Even when there are visitors and also when the children are there.

Last year, on vacation on Curaçao, a fat one with a red body flew over, while I was in the pool with my oldest. I thought I was going crazy. Tijn was wearing swimming armbands and held on to me. When I spotted the dragonfly, I decided in a split second that I had to hide under water. I went under, but in the meantime lifted Tijn up. He started to scream. It must have really looked like I was sacrificing my son to the dragonfly. Tijn then said: ‘Next time you must also pull me under the water, mommy’. So am I conveying my fear? Uh, I’m afraid so.”

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