A Picturesque Escape

Shirley was desperate. Her husband Mark had become unbearable, even violent. Her two young autistic twin sons, Ben and Aiden, were regressing. Shirley tried to keep her family together despite Mark's drinking and frequent womanizing. Shirley had no choice. She didn't have her own source of income. Sure, they always struggled financially, but she wasn't about to make her financial situation worse by leaving Mark. She was forced to narrow her social circle to include virtually no one. Mark had intentionally forced her into seclusion in a small suburb of Utah.

Her life surrounded her sons. Though they did not tolerate touch and remained relatively mute, she knew when they were uncomfortable or stressed. It is true that motherly intuition is a superpower. Mark's drunken screaming affected all of them in different ways and Shirley desperately tried to shield her sons from him.

She could tolerate the abuse if it did not affect her sons, but it was hurting them. A psychologist had mentioned that a pet might be a comforting addition to Ben and Aiden, but Mark vetoed it.

Suffice to say, she needed a fresh start that did not include a violent husband.

It was time to seek help. It was a sweltering Utah summer and she felt disgusting remaining in her home any longer. She wanted to leave the house and treat the boys to vanilla ice cream (their favorite), but Mark had purposely withheld her weekly allowance because she failed to "properly vacuum" their living room.

Unfortunately, many of her immediate family members had passed. She was the youngest of two sisters, of which Mary was still alive. Mary and Shirley [temporarily] lost their sisterly bond after Shirley married Mark and forcibly lost contact with the outside world. Mary always suspected abuse but never knew for sure.

Shirley messaged Mary through Facebook asking for her number and a good time to call. Nothing more in case Mark saw the message because he checked her Facebook account regularly. Mary was surprised when Shirley's message appeared on her phone with a small photo of Shirley and the boys. Shirley rarely posted any photos of Mark. Mary's intuition warned her that something was likely wrong.

The sisters spoke by phone five minutes after the original message was sent. Mary still had Shirley's number and called her as soon as she was able.

Mary found that Shirley sounded weak and timid, which was contrary to her bubbly nature as kids.

Hi Mary. I know it's been a while but it hasn't been by choice.

She paused and hesitated before continuing.

Mark is unwell.

His drinking is out of control, and I don't feel safe raising the boys in this kind of environment anymore.

I can't put any of this in writing, but can you help us?

Shirley was pressing the phone to her ear while whispering even though Mark was at work. It was like a ghost took his place at home whenever Mark was at work watching and tormenting them.

Mary understood Shirley's plight instantly without having dealt with abuse herself.

Sisterly bond.

Mary replied, Shirley, it's good to hear from you.

It has been a while.

I will help in any way I can.

Are you in immediate danger?

What can I do?

That call sparked an immediate end to Shirley's hellish seclusion.

She was worried about disrupting Ben and Aiden's routine, but a violent household would inevitably disrupt it more.

As fate would have it, Mary's daughter Kara had acquired a lot of land, including a barn and a large home in southwest Wyoming, after Kara's husband's father passed away. The father left the entire farm to them in hopes they would raise a large family there. Shirley immediately liked that Kara lived in a semi-isolated area and that Mark would have no idea it existed. Shirley never spoke about her family to him and he never bothered to ask.

In the meantime, Ben had become fascinated with owls, particularly barn owls, after learning about them in his second-grade class. He loved to draw stick versions of them and look at pictures of baby barn owls.

He would explain to Shirley that the male barn owls make a long, harsh scream that lasted for about two seconds, as opposed to the traditional hoot noise. Shirley found that comical and strange, and determined it was a sound she wouldn't want to hear late at night. Aiden laughed every time Ben and Shirley discussed the strange sound.

Shirley tried to cheer the boys up one day after Mark had screamed at them in another intoxicated rage by conjuring up her own version of the barn owl scream. She purposely made it over the top and loved watching her sons laugh. It had taken awhile for them to show that kind of emotion and once they did, they only laughed with her. It was their circle of trust.

Shirley had taken both boys to their local zoo several times, but unfortunately there were no owls to view. She tried to explain to Ben that they wouldn't be able to see any owls at the zoo or at home, but he relented and couldn't grasp their nocturnal and secluded nature. Though Utah had owls, and Shirley was born and raised in the state, she had never seen one. They seemed like an enchanted character as opposed to a real animal.

Shirley rarely had tangible hope given her current life predicament, but she found herself fantasizing that Ben might be able to catch a glimpse of a barn owl at Kara's farm. They were relocating to a farm with a barn for heaven's sake! Though she loved her sons fiercely, she constantly beat herself up over feelings of inadequacy that came with Mark's abuse. She pondered whether Ben seeing a barn owl would erase all those years of abuse and trauma he likely endured. Hope, for once, kept her going.

Anyways, back to reality.

Shirley gathered her most important belongings with the speed of an Olympic sprinter. She collected only basic clothes, a small amount of cash that she kept in her closet unbeknownst to Mark, and Ben and Aiden's belongings. Kara's farm was about two hours away. She couldn't risk calling an Uber or Lyft driver, because she worried Mark had some way of monitoring everything she did on her phone. She also needed to spend her meager cash carefully. She found herself wasting time worrying whether those apps even accepted cash.

Mary had a friend that lived nearby. Evidently, she had left a former abusive husband in her past and understood Shirley's plight. She would pick them up and angelically transform their life through one simple drive.

Shirley explained to the boys on the ride there that they were going on an adventure to a magical farm. They seemed excited. Since they lived in the suburbs, farms were not exactly a common thing for them to see or understand. Ben clutched his barn owl picture book and Shirley continued to desperately hope Ben would catch a glimpse of one. As if on cue, Ben unloaded all his barn owl knowledge to Mary's friend during the ride. Shirley had even managed to snag a pair of binoculars for Ben at a garage sale a year ago.

Off they road. Mary's friend seemed kind and understanding of their situation. She didn't pry so she turned the conversation into one of coming anticipation: she talked about Kara's farm. She told them that Kara and her husband had chickens, two horses, one dog, and several cats. The boys giggled. They loved kittens. Shirley remembered the psychologist that recommended buying the boys a pet. Maybe the farm animals were going to be their version of that advice.

Just maybe this farm would bring healing.

Shirley became emotional as the farmhouse and surrounding barn came into view. The home was large and picturesque. She felt so undeserving of this calm place that was clearly treated with a lot of love and grace. Mark did not acknowledge her worth as a human being. The farm was surrounded by mountains and tucked away from the bustling world.

Kara, Mary's daughter, was sitting on a rocking chair outside the home. She was thin. Must be the farmer's diet, thought Shirley.

As they inched closer to the home, Kara's husband came from the barn. He was tall with a long beard and walking cane. A small grey cat followed him. Shirley hoped for a strong male figure to wipe out memories of Mark.

"Welcome home!" he bellowed.

Shirley broke down. To her "home" was akin to violence. She wanted to sleep in her own bed without smelling Mark on or around her. She wanted to see her son's happy and calm. She wanted to feel like a good mother again (even though she was always).

She thanked Mary's friend profusely and began a new chapter of her life.

That new chapter began with some sound advice: Kara suggested that Shirley turn her phone off for safety reasons. At least for a few days. They came to a mutual understanding that Shirley would stay as long as she needed to figure things out. Kara and her husband had the ability to feed the thankful family of three. Kara had a motherly nature to her as well, and Shirley came to find out that Kara was unable to conceive.

During the first week there, Shirley felt relaxed given the calming environment but also worn down. She felt like she had recently been released from the hospital after getting hit by a car. Her chest routinely felt tight, and food was off-putting. Her thoughts were not initially healthy. She often found herself looking outside to see if Mark had found them and justifying her worries to Kara. She could sense that her worrying was bordering on paranoia, but Kara kindly assured her otherwise.

After she would convince herself that Mark was nowhere to be found, she would allow five minutes each morning to stare at the surrounding mountains and take several deep breaths. Then, she would gingerly walk over to Ben and Aiden's nearby room and watch them sleep peacefully. She wished she could pause time. As it was summertime, they had no school or extracurricular obligations. Mark liked his family tucked at home, secluded from society and within his unreasonable control. She didn't allow herself to worry about any future to do's and let them sleep in peace.

She would gather happiness from that morning routine.

Then, she would go downstairs and sip a cup of tea with Kara. Kara was upset that she could not fulfill her deceased father-in-law's wishes to raise a large family at the farm, but Shirley promised Kara that opening her home to Shirley's small family would have undoubtedly made her father-in-law proud.

Kara was also gifted at making a simple but delicious cup of homey tea soaked in oozing honey. She would pour Shirley's the tea into Shirley's cup, as if she didn't want Shirley to make any decisions or expend unnecessary energy. Shirley was not afforded any luxuries in her former life, so she accepted the hospitality with glea after her anxiety subsided.

Kara wanted to make her home comfortable and inviting to the now family of three, and she would often ask Shirley about their preferences.

Shirley realized that she no longer had preferences and couldn't even remember what her favorite color was anymore.

She also had trouble accepting things or acts of kindness, such as a cup of tea, but she soon realized that the universe wanted her to slow down and soak up human kindness. She decided that being a strong mother meant that she needed to accept help from those around her. That way, she would have enough room in her cup to shower Ben and Aiden with love. Their picturesque new oasis hidden in mother nature allowed them to heal as a family.

Things were going well there.

As fate would have it, Shirley woke up one night and couldn't fall back asleep. Her mind was racing with no thoughts in particular.

Seconds later, she heard a loud, harsh scream that lasted for a few seconds coming from outside her window. It couldn't be... she thought. It terrified her. The scream sounded like an animal, but Shirley's senses were still lulled by the night. Shirley looked out her window and saw a large owl sitting on a nearby tree. The owl was haunting and intoxicating, almost as if a light was shining on the owl in the midst of a pitch-black night.

Wait, what? Is this real life?

She continued her knack for achieving things at an Olympian speed and woke the boys. They both awoke quickly. She tried to mouth o-w-l to Ben but picked him up instead. She carried him to her room, as Aiden followed closely behind, and the haunting owl was still there facing the window from the tree. Its piercing black eyes seemed to provide some sort of message. Shirley felt like it was protecting them.

Ben was able to see the owl through his binoculars and hear the strange scream that he so often explained to his mother and the same one his mother so often used to cheer him up in their melancholy world. To her surprise, she welcomed the scream.

"Is that a barn owl?" Shirley whispered to Ben. Even though it was a rheorical question, she wanted to savor the moment and study his reaction.

Though they rarely hugged, Ben hugged Shirley tightly and smiled. Aiden touched Ben's arm. She loved her sons so much.

They named their new protector, Liam.

Maybe all would be alright.