A tired soul

On an old abandon farm, in the middle of nowhere, an old barn owl resides. In the dark of the night, he perches on the skeleton of a bare oak tree, calling for a mate and searching the ground below for his next meal. Tonight was no different as he stood under the stars, wishing a suitor would return his calls into the abyss. He has been at this for so long, the old owl can recall when this oak was once a vibrant, lush, tree. A time came years ago when the tree’s soul left this world, along with all the inhabitants, leaving the owl to live out his last years all alone.

The stars to the east were fading away, hinting that the owl was going to return home yet another morning with no love. He calls one last time and waits, listening, still hopeful after all these years. A robin answers his calls, signaling it is time for the day shifters to take over once more. He screeches as he swoops out of the bare tree, flying across a golden hay field to an old abandon barn. Although he has had the entire barn to himself for so long, the owl always finds his spot to sleep in the highest corner. Like him, the barn was old and tired. Both missing some pieces, and eerily creaking when they moved from tired, warn joints.

As the owl sleeps another summers day away, his dreams take him to a happy place. One where he remembers other owls, it has been so long since another barn owl has come through here. The owl dreams of being younger and flying carelessly through the forest, weaving in and out of the branches with ease. Now the flight from the barn to the oak tree can sometimes be a struggle. Every night he wakes up with a happy outlook, grateful for another night, thankful for the dreams.

Tonight was like any other night, as he stretched upon his perch inside the barn. The day birds were still singing, but the sky was painted with red and orange hues. As always, he scans the barn floor looking for an easy meal and sees nothing yet again. He flies out to the roof top to admire the beautiful sunset, one of his favorite things to do. The roof of the old barn was losing to mother nature and had very few spots left safe enough for the giant bird to stand. None of that mattered when he admired the sunset, this always took him out of his thoughts for a moment.

Tonight is a good night, on top of the breathtaking sunset, the owl is blessed with finding a meal on his way to the old oak tree. Now, all he must worry about is calling for a mate. He knows, at this point in his life, mating was no longer in the question. Yet after thousands of failed nights, driven by an aching heart, he calls once more. The night was full of noise from bugs, crickets, frogs and whatnot, but to him the night remains silent.

Halfway through the night, after a short nap, he calls once more. Suddenly, he hears a call in return. Not sure if he is still dreaming, the owl calls again… nothing. The owl fluffs his feathers in frustration, then hears the sound again. This isn’t a mating call he thought, this sounds like another owl in trouble. Forgetting that he has been standing there all night, the owl flies out towards the sound, instantly regretting his decision as he almost hit the ground before regaining blood flow to his wings.

Not too far off the hay field into the forest, the owl finds the source of the calls. On the forest floor he finds an old female barn own, too injured to fly. What he does not know is that she too suffered from a lonely heart, only she decided to leave her home to find love knowing her time was running low. He can see that she cannot fly, he looks back in the direction of the hay field. He knows that they are food here on the ground, and surely her calls were heard by creatures with other intentions.

The old owl walks towards the direction of home, then back to her. She understands his cue and follows him, two owls walking through the woods in the darkness. Never had he walked anywhere, but his old wings throbbed from the unexpected trip and welcomed the walk. A sense of relief came to her as she knew this was what she went looking for. They reach the edge of the hay field and can now see the barn in the distance, the darkness fading to light on the horizon. Suddenly, a coyote calls behind them, he is on their scent.

The two run across the field as fast as they can, both half heartedly using their wings to gain speed at times. They never looked back to see how close they came to becoming dinner as they jumped through an opening in the barn wall. He is home, and for the first time ever, not alone.

The owl knows neither of them can make it to his perch, so he starts gathering old musty hay to make a temporary nest. She helps as well, dragging her injured wing as she carries bits of material following his lead. The robins are singing outside, this he knew meant that the coyotes had moved on. It also meant that it was now bedtime, and as he finished the nest, he realizes that for the first time ever he will not be sleeping alone. Suddenly he became scared, an emotion the old owl had never felt until now. She can sense his unease and gives a soft coo to signal him to join her in the nest.

The two found their places in the nest and quickly fell asleep after such an exhausting night. Ironically, both dreamed the same dream. Dreaming of flying together in their younger years, soaring through the night sky together so happily. They dreamed of making a home together in the once younger barn as well. The dream seemed so real and went on for what seemed like forever, the fell in love together in their sleep.

Night is here, and the day birds are now quiet. The owls should be awake by now, yet there they both are, cuddled together on the floor in the corner of the old barn. More years go by, and the barn begins to fall, piece by piece. The hay field had been sold in auction along with the crumbling barn and the young new owner is there, exploring the rubble for treasures left by previous farmers. As he pulls a plank from the ground, he discovers something strange. Up against the old brick foundation, on the floor of the barn, lay a pile of bones in a moldy old nest.

The young man has no idea the story he just discovered, the story of two lonely old owls that held on long enough to find each other. Although the owls only knew of each other for a few hours, their dreams allowed the two to build a life together. They both left this world in love and at peace, together.