Lessons from an Owl

A Conversation in the Parking Lot

The other night I was talking with a friend after a meeting we had both attended. Our cars were parked next to each other, which made it easy to just stand there and keep talking. I had noticed she seemed a little off lately, so I asked, and she began telling me about the overwhelming things she had been dealing with lately. Work things. Family things. The kind of weight that accumulates quietly until it's hard to carry.

I listened. I let her know I was thinking about her, supporting her, praying for her. That's really all any of us can do sometimes, and it matters more than we realize.

Then the Owl Showed Up

As the dusk deepened, standing there in that parking lot surrounded by trees and a small natural wetland area, we heard it, a familiar hoo-hooo, then again. Both of us are nature lovers, so it was completely natural to stop mid-sentence and turn toward the sound.

And then the really miraculous thing happened. I spotted the owl in silhouette on a bare branch at the top of a tree and was able to point it out to my friend. I even managed a couple of very low quality phone photos, but then we just stood there. Listened. Took a couple of deep breaths. Talked quietly about how extraordinary it was to be in the presence of one of our wild neighbors.

A few minutes, that's all. Then, after already standing in that parking lot for the better part of an hour, we said our goodbyes and headed home.

I’ve never been so excited about getting two low quality images as I was the other night, capturing the silhouette of this great horned owl. By the way, they are the only species of owl that really say “who.”

What It Gave Us Both

My friend thanked me for stopping to watch the owl with her. I was thinking the exact same thing and said so.

I know that those few quiet moments helped lift some of the weight from her shoulders. I know it did for me too. There is something about being surprised by wildness in an ordinary place - a parking lot at dusk, an owl on a bare branch - that reminds you the world is larger than your problems. That you are not alone in it.

The Lesson

It is worth it to pause. To be present with someone who is struggling. To listen, both to the person in front of you and to the wild neighbors we share this world with.

My friend has been that support for me in the past, and I was only too happy to return it. Just showing up, listening, and then being open enough to let a parking lot owl interrupt everything, that brought more peace to that evening than I could have planned for.

Sometimes the most healing thing is simply being reminded that we are all here together.