I know cockroaches aren’t actually dangerous.
I know they don’t attack people.
Still, when I see one,
my reaction feels excessive.
It’s immediate.
Almost physical.
Why does it hit that hard?
Ossan’s answer:
Because cockroaches don’t threaten you.
They ignore you.
They move as if your presence
doesn’t matter.
That’s unsettling.
Most things we fear
acknowledge us in some way.
Noise. Size. Intent.
Cockroaches don’t.
They slip through
the edges of your attention
and remind you that control
is always partial.
Your reaction isn’t about danger.
It’s about the sudden collapse
of a quiet assumption:
“That this space is fully mine.”
Once that assumption breaks,
the body responds before the mind can catch up.
Knowing this doesn’t make them pleasant.
It just explains
why the feeling is so strong.
And understanding that
is usually enough for now.