Typically, when one decides to waste two hours of their life mindlessly scrolling through TikTok videos, the intention is to get a few laughs in. The person who created Ten Legs, Eight Broken clearly had other plans for viewers, tough.
On June 11, TikToker @user68519586 (also known as l, e) posted a rather heartfelt video on the social media platform, a poem written by themself portraying a conversation between a dying spider and the human responsible for its sorry state. Not too long after, the poem became viral on the platform, causing a widespread wave of regret among other users, who have since taken to sharing their tearful reactions to the poem, even almost a month after the original post.
Recently, Ten Legs, Eight Broken even got its very own dramatic reading by user Harrison Emmonds (@harrisonemmonds), which combined with soft piano music in the background, aids in setting the right atmosphere for the poem’s sorrowful tone.
Since June, the original TikTok has gathered over 6.5 million views, and some of the reaction clips to it have broken the one million mark. Every day, more and more folks jump on this sad train as they read the poem for themselves.
Of course, animal lovers are the most affected by this piece of art, but it’s hard for even spider-haters to remain indifferent to it. It’s safe to say that many people are now retiring from their insect-annihilating ways, despite how scared they might be of the tiny creatures.