Whooooo Knew?

Whooooo Knew?

By Janice Bumbalough Marler

Word Count 849

Based on true events; this happened in the late eighties and the mid ninties.

I don’t know what there was about my vehicles, but for some reason owls were attracted to them. The first time it happened, I was living in the country. It was late into the evening and I needed something from the corner store before they closed. Just as I pulled onto the roadway I heard a THUMP! What in the world was that noise? I stopped the car, got out, and lying on the road was a small, brown and tan barn owl. He was so cute. I picked him up, took him back to the house, and put him in a small, empty shoe box that I had padded with hand-towels. He was totally out of it.

Apparently I didn’t need whatever it was that badly from the store because I changed into my night clothes and eased myself into bed. I prayed the little critter would survive the night. Sometime around seven a.m. I awoke to the sounds of him flying around my living room. He was bouncing off of my lamps, the windows, and my furniture. I got up to see where he was. He had flown to the top of my recliner rocker which was sitting under one of the widows. He would try to fly out of the window and discovered he couldn’t, so he perched on top of my chair. I approached him cautiously. To my surprise, he let me pick him up.

I was careful to use a small hand-towel from the kitchen. I laid him on his back and petted his head; all the while he was eyeing me. He had one eye shut and the other one open. He appeared to be recovering from a hang-over. In fact, it reminded me of an alcoholic sobering up. You have seen them in your lifetime; they lean their heads back, open one eye to look at you, and have the other one shut.

I began laughing at the little owl but I knew I he needed to be outside in his own habitat. I was saddened when I had to let him fly away. Inside I was hoping he might visit me again. It was just wishful thinking.

Several years later, after I left law-enforcement, I went to work at IBM, in the Research Triangle, here in North Carolina, with Wackenhut Security. Sunday was not a busy day. While driving around the parking lots I listened to a minister on the radio preach about prayer and how powerful prayer can be. I am not a self-centered person and I don’t like to pray for personal things, that is, unless they are necessary. i.e.: letting me work enough overtime so I can meet my debts. The Lord helps those who help themselves. I don’t expect Him to just drop it into my lap.

I pondered about my prayer and decided that if I asked for wisdom, as the scriptures tell us to, God would answer that prayer. And how He answered it was just too funny.

I had completed my shift and was on my way out of the main driveway leading to Davis Drive. Several vehicles were on their way in. WHOP! Something had flown into my driver’s side mirror and broke it. IBM is also a wild life preserve. I stopped my Chevy S-10 truck; lying in the grass was a huge narcotized owl. He was beautiful. You know the adage: Owls are full of wisdom. God had sent me an owl when I asked Him for wisdom. Who says God doesn’t have a sense of humor.

I had paper towels in my truck, wrapping several layers of the towels around him, I picked the benumbed bird up. There were several men at the scene, but not one of them was brave enough to pick up the unconscious, nocturnal hooter. One of the janitors was at the scene; he had a radio. He contacted the main control center and advised them we were on our way back with an injured, and unconscious owl. Could they contact animal control? When we arrived back at headquarters, someone found a nice box to put the bird in. Eventually he came to. He was confounded. I reached into the box to pet him one last time. Not at anytime did he try to attack me. In fact, he seemed appreciative of my gesture.

I was laughing all the way home and couldn’t wait to tell my daughter, and my friends, about the prayer and how God answered it.

Not long after that occurrence, another owl attacked my driver’s side mirror.
As I turned onto Alexander Drive, from IBM, I turned into heavily congested traffic. I recall sitting at the stop light behind several vehicles when I heard another loud THUMP! It was an owl, but this time the nocturnal bird didn’t stand a chance. The traffic began moving and he had fallen into the path of other cars and died.

Several years have past and there have been no other incidents.
Perhaps I had received my allotted wisdom.

Story ID:	2133
Written by:	Janice Dolores Marler (bio, contact, other stories)
Story type:	Family Memories
Writers Conference:	$500 2007 Family Memories Writing Project
Location:	Wake Forest NC usa
Year:	1980
Person:	An Owl