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The Barn Owls Last Mission

A Loving Farewell

By Diseree Lee ZacherPublished 3 years ago 9 min read
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"It's gaze captured me, and led me to the truth" Michael

The house had been empty for some time when Michael pulled in that night. It had been several months since his mother and father had suddenly went missing but he could not let go of the strange feeling that the answers to their mysterious disappearance were there, he just had to look. As he sat in silence in the running car, he once again went through the events of the last few months in his head as he lightly clenched the steering wheel. His gaze was vague and at nothing in particular. His golden-brown hair was a mess atop his head and his blue eyes were glazed over with tears. “What am I missing?” he sighed as the events leading up to that night flooded his mind.

He had arrived home from college for a weekend visit several months prior, and on the day he found them gone. The house looked as peaceful as he it had growing up there. Michael had an amazing childhood on that farm. From the white picket fence that circled the front of the baby blue, cottage style home, to the acres of open land circled with more acres of wild forest on the horizon, it was so peaceful.

The horses were stabled and fed and the property well-kept upon his arrival. His father had a few farm hands that often came and helped out and whom had obviously been at the property recently. They had reported nothing out of the ordinary when the police contacted them.

Michael was quick to call the local law enforcement once he realized his parent’s absence, but they had stated they had no answers after they searched his parent’s home which showed no signs of struggle. There were no reports of them being admitted at any local hospitals and no one had reported seeing them.

His parents had simply disappeared, vanished into thin air. Their identification and a few belongings were gone along with their old blue 1952 Chevy but everything else looked completely normal.

The drive through the mountains on to the way to the farm earlier that day from the busy city where he had resided had felt strange. He left his college local dorm in anticipation of the peaceful drive down the long windy and desolate road. Instead, he had felt a strange sense of urgency the entire time. While he normally took his time, he found himself speeding at often unsafe speeds. His gut was in knots as he pulled up.

He remembered it clearly, the strange and eerie silence that spread across the farm. Every door to the home was locked up and nothing was out of place and there was again, no sign of struggle.

He had known his parents should not have been leaving to go anywhere alone. His father was ill and required oxygen and his mother was losing her vision. They were both well advanced in years and relied on a lot of help around the house as it was. Michael had wanted to stay at home and help them when he received an amazing opportunity to get his Psychology Degree paid for in full. His parents wanted nothing more than to see him succeed so they refused to let him pass up the offer for them. He had done very well, and they had been so proud.

He was about to begin his last semester at the university the week after he went home to find his mother and father gone. He was their only child and their only living family. They would have known he would help them with anything they needed during his visit as this was why he returned home so often. There was nowhere they needed to be that could not have waited for him. This frustrated him so and he often found himself wondering how things would have turned out had they just waited for him.

The police had said they were looking for the car and would alert him as soon as they knew anything, but the call never came, and he was forced to return to school a few days later. It truly broke his heart that with his graduation was so close, and his parents were now nowhere to be found. He had feared he would lose them before graduating and their absence now felt simply unfair.

It took all he had within himself to finish his studies. While he had maintained a 4.0 GPA his entire collegiate career, this semester he was lucky to escape with a 3.3. Still, it was over, and he could return back to his hometown. He had hoped so desperately to find closure. He had nowhere else to go now that school was out, and it forced him to realize how alone he was in this world.

He realized that once he returned home he should start planning a memorial for them instead of a celebration for himself. He checked into an old motel about 15 minutes from the farm as he was still actively playing things out in his mind. He was not ready to return to the house to stay there alone, not until he knew what had happened to them. He simply could not put it out of his head that he was missing something about their disappearance and later found himself wide awake amidst the darkness of the night and the loneliness of the motel. He knew the chances of him finding any evidence the police missed, especially at night, was slim but his gut would not let him go back to sleep.

He jumped into his car and sped to the home he had spent his entire life in; and there he sat.

“I knew your time was close but never thought I would lose you both, at the same time.” He said to himself in the dark silence of his car. In the background 80’s country played the song, ‘Daddy’s Hands’ as he wiped his tears and tightened his gaze.

The property was quiet and through the moonlight he could see the glow of the old barn owl starring back at him. That owl had lived longer than it probably should have as Michael remembers it from his earliest childhood memories. The sight of it made him smile ever so slightly. It seemed to stare directly at him as they held each other’s gaze. Michael exited the car. He began to walk through the light of his headlights towards the white owl that sat perched on the branch of a tree at the beginning of the vast wilderness that makes up the land. It looked behind itself for a moment, then back into Michael’s eyes before taking off into the wilderness.

Michael ran after it instinctively. The owl landed periodically on the surrounding trees, allowing him to catch up and find his way. It would then take flight again as it led him further into the darkness. This continued for some time before the owl came to a stop at the top of a clearing with a steep drop behind it. There were dirt roads feeding this clearing and Michael vaguely remembered it as the area that his parents would take him out to ride the ATV as a small child. There was an area on the other side big enough for a trailer that then breaks off onto smaller dirt paths that eventually come to an end in the vast wilderness. It takes a long detour to get to entrance from his house and he had forgot to mention the area to the police as its existence had slipped his mind. The owl then took off again and came to land at the bottom of the drop on something that looked familiar in the darkness. The moonlight reflected the shade of blue from the frame of his father’s classis chevy. “MOM! DAD!” he yelled immediately as he ran towards the vehicle.

They looked asleep inside when he found them, but they were not. He called their names and shook their bodies, but they did not respond. In the back of the car were several deflated balloons and graduation decorations, some with his name imprinted on them. They had been so proud.

His parents had been gone for some time and the smell overtook him as he attempted to enter the car. His face filled with tears as he realized there was nothing that could be done. He shook as he reached for his cell phone from within his pocket to called 911. Police arrived quickly.

It was only the next morning when the small-town police office was finally able to piece it all together. His loving parents had left the day prior to their son’s expected arrival headed to the nearest little town in the opposite direction. They rarely went into this town and did not know their way well but had wanted to keep their plan as secret as possible. They had intended on surprising their sweet child with an early graduation party. They had been informed earlier that month that Michael’s father’s health was further deteriorating, and he was not expected to live much longer. They had wanted to ensure that they got to give their son the celebration he deserved prior to his passing. Instead, his mother must have gotten turned around on her way back and went into the wrong drive. She then found herself lost and frightened when her husbands oxygen ran out and he sadly expired shortly after. She was found next to him, in his arms. The cold of the night against her fragile frame was said to be her cause of death. The sight of them lying together reminded Michael of being a child and watching them fall asleep in each other’s arms on the couch. They held such immense love for each other that, as painful as it was, he was glad they expired together. He could not imagine one being forced to live without the other.

Michael’s heart was broken but he could not help but be thankful for the old barn owl who led him to their remains.

He walked proudly during his graduation knowing that his success was their dying wish. He moved into their home following his graduation and began to go through their old photos and memories. They had so many fond ones it made their him smile. They loved him and had the pictures to prove it. It brought him joy to know he meant so much to them and that their life had been happy and fulfilling.

He felt sad at their loss but never alone.

The owl remained with him for several more years. He started a private counseling service out of his home and focused a lot of his time on working with patients experiencing loss due to death or illness. During every session he could look out the window and find the old barn owl watching over him intently.

It served as a constant reminder that he was never alone. It comforted him in this untimely transition and helped him to find the strength to move on. Then one day, it was simply gone. A few days following this Michael met a beautiful girl with brown eyes and freckles and they began their life together.

Michael with never truly understand the barn owl’s purpose but he will never forget it nor the closure and subsequent comfort it offered.

It was clear to him that there are truly things within this world that we will never understand but will serve to protect and comfort us if we seek them out.

grief
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About the Creator

Diseree Lee Zacher

A 37 yr old female and a Utah native, I'd describe as an adventurer. I seek serenity, though I don't find this in the material world. I love all foods but highly processed items. My favorite foods originate from Russia and Eastern Europe.

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