As she listened to them, it brought back so many thoughts. Just laying in bed reading a book then a ‘who who’ like it was right outside her bedroom window. Suddenly another ‘who who who’ but from another part of the yard. She couldn’t believe it, not just 1 but 2 owls chatting with one another in her backyard. She put her book down almost forgetting to save the page and ran outside. “Where do you think you’re going?”, asked her brother looking up from the tv for a moment. “I’ve got to get outside and see the owls!” She didn’t even grab a jacket and being a cold fall night that would of been a good idea. She opened the back door leading to the porch and opened that back door and just sat at the top of the stairs. Again, “who who” came across the yard and sounded so much closer now. How wonderful when she was already trying to escape reality that some owls would come by.

Ever since her middle school, outdoor school trip to camp she just fell in love with owls. Any kind were fine but the barn owl was definitely her favorite. One evening during outdoor school the class took a small walk in the woods and ended up in a clearing on a small hill. The teachers had brought recordings of owls to play in hopes to get real responses. It was just as chilly that night as this one. It took about a half hour but finally at camp she heard a real owl for the first time. It was like classical music to her ears. Never really sure why but they just brought her peace somehow. Something about them felt magical. Listening to the “who’s” and imagining what they were saying to one another just beautiful. The teachers told us what they believe some patterns of who’s meant but Ariel didn’t listen to that, just the owls. She heard them another time at her grandmothers but this time it was so real and so close. She wondered if her mom remembered her love for owls and maybe sent them to let her know things are ok. She missed her mom so much, but started to come to gripes with the fact that it would be awhile till she’s see her once more.