Asking for A Sign

The sidewalk lit with streetlights fading against the mist of the night's rain. The low-sitting clouds create a layer of fog over the city. With each step, stress and anxiety build up as Margo has no idea what she is doing or where she is headed next.

No sense of safety or security.

A life once so abundant in material things has now turned into the loss of all she has ever known. Margo has been homeless now for 8 months. Long enough to find the places where she feels even a little bit comfortable sleeping but not long enough to feel safe – if that ever happens.

Margo is now 23. She moved to Vancouver city almost a year ago with the dream and aspiration of creating beautiful art. Margo expected to meet other creatives that would introduce her to galleries and take her under their wing. She was on a search for a family that could support her creativity. A community of like minds and beautiful souls. As you probably have already guessed, it didn't quite come to manifest that way. She is free-spirited and a self-proclaimed spiritualist. She knows that her journey in the city is more significant than just showing up to meet people. She has come to find herself.

As she takes her nightly walk around the city, she hangs her head and counts her steps as this is all the joy she can conjure up these days. She finds that walking before finding a place to rest makes it easier for her to fall asleep without too much worry. But tonight was different. Margo saw the full moon peeking through the fog, sitting in the abyss of black sky. She had an epiphany. The realization that life is far beyond what she had been giving it credit for. She starts to speak aloud to the universe or whoever could hear her voice.

"It isn't until you're in this position that you understand that life is meant to be greater than our overbearing expectations. Every day I walk – nowhere in particular and for no scheduled amount of time, but this has shown me that there is truly no rush in where we are going."

The silence was broken.

"I know this is not my future. I know there is more for me and for my life. I just need help, and I don't know where to go or who to ask."

Margo's words continue to pour out as if a flow of consciousness is speaking through her.

"I want to be supported. Please help me. Please send me a sign," Margo cries.

Tears now falling one by one onto the balls of her cheeks.

"Just show me that your listening, that you can hear me, that someone or something greater is looking out for me."

Nothing sudden happens, but Margo keeps going on her way, wiping away the tears, hoping that a sign will appear to show her that she isn't alone.

Margo stops at a corner of a downtown residential area. Apartment buildings surround her, and trees line the street. As she waits for the crosswalk light to change, she hears an owl's faint but audible sound. Coming across this animal in the area, let alone in the city, is rare, but she knew she had to search to make sure. Margo's night quickly went from having no purpose to finding this beloved owl that she has now deemed her sign.

She no longer walks but instead takes on a bit of a jog as she turns up and down the streets to figure out where the sound is coming from.

Margo then slows down. Closes her eye, takes a breath, and listens. When she opens her eyes, she sees what she has been looking for. A barn owl sitting in a tree, looking directly at her. But it wasn't just the owl that caught her attention. This owl and the tree stood in front of a women's center. Boasting a banner for community, creativity, and safety.

Margo looked up – the fog, again covering the sky, the owl was gone, and the street lights dimmed behind the rain. Margo closes her eyes, picturing the universe in her mind, and says in a soft but deeply profound voice, "Thank you." She then takes her last nightly walk towards the door, being welcomed into a community – that is all Margo ever wanted.