The Owl And The Fly by Joanne Olivieri

The Owl And The Fly

Sunshine glistens
atop the trees and
Wilbur’s barn.

He stands quietly
snoozing away the morning
eyelids closed and feathers groomed.

I come to visit as I always do
soft whispers “good morning baby boy”
and he opens his eyes and turns his head.

I never mean to wake him as he sleeps
yet he knows when I am there and greets me
with his tender smile and heart shaped face.

He is my pet, my spirit bird and my family
who gives me such joy
just by being the sweetest owl he can be.

He lights up my days
and brings me a sense of
peace when I look into his eyes.

This morning, he greets me at his barn door
and I can feel his excitement
for the beautiful day.

It is quiet, the familiar bird calls
hush a lullaby
and Wilbur is joyously calm

Then, from nowhere, an incessant buzzing
grips the peaceful air around his barn
and a fly appears in Wilbur’s sight.

Wilbur is frightened by this noise and
retreats, walking backward into
the corner of his barn.

He is afraid,  I know
I can feel his fear
inside my heart.

I try and shoo the fly away
yet the fly would not stop
torturing Wilbur with his maniacal buzzing.

You see an owl’s hearing is acute and inherent
as they catch their prey by using their hearing
in the dead of night.

For my Wilbur, this buzzing
was torture
as he knew not what it was, nor what to do.

Though my shooing was not working
I knew I had to try and calm Wilbur
as he was becoming more afraid.

I set my attention solely on Wilbur
and began my human to owl whisper
looking directly into his eyes.

“Wilbur, don’t be afraid
he’s just a little fly that can’t hurt you,
I won’t let him get near you.”

“I won’t let him or anything ever hurt you
You’re my baby boy, I love you
and will always protect you.”

Wilbur then calmed down and
began walking towards the front of his barn
all the while looking right at me.

As he approached outside
the fly finally retreated and flew away
and my baby boy was again calm and happy.

I visited with him a while
then let him get back to snooze part of the day away
 after all he is nocturnal.

This story is true.  I would visit Wilbur every day and had so many wonderful experiences while visiting him.  I decided to bring you this story in the form of a poem to illustrate the connection between humans and the animal world.  There is a definite bond there whether the animal is of a wild or domesticated nature.  Wilbur and I definitely have that bond.  I can read his heart with a connection that is difficult to explain but is there.  Animals are sacred beings upon this earth and should be treated and loved as such.

I created a website for Wilbur at http://mybabyboywilburthebarnowl.shutterfly.com where  you can see literally thousands of photos I took of him over these past few years. Enjoy!

Thank you.