Owlishness

The blood seeped out of his nose, painting a jagged, vermillion stroke across his upper lip which formed into a steady succession of droplets that crested the ridge of his lip and fell amongst the leaves below as he ran. Jack was racing through the woods, dodging trees that attempted to thwart his forward momentum. Behind him was Max--the school bully.

Jack slowed to a halt as a dark structure suddenly loomed in front of him. It looked like an old barn, although it was hard to tell in its current state of dilapidation.

Jack moved toward the abandoned barn, intrigued. The aged building had a large open doorway. Any door that used to hang there was long gone, replaced by an inky ingress.

The weathered board and batten siding had passed beyond grey and turned dark. Standing in stark relief against the tenebrous cladding was a sporadic patina of bright green moss that crept up along the corners and spread to the roof like a verdant healing salve that had been applied to save the forlorn building from ultimate decay.

It should have seemed foreboding, but to Jack, it was as if the old structure was extending him an invitation. He obliged.

Glancing around inside, he found some stairs and started upward into the loft. Once there, he laid down on his back. He wiped remnants of crusty crimson from his upper lip and released a deep sigh, feeling his thrumming heartbeat begin to slow from a canter to a walk.

Jack heard a rustling sound behind him, and sat up, looking in the direction of the sound. It was an owl. It was perched near the loft window, and while its body faced away from Jack, its head was turned one hundred and eighty degrees, staring at Jack with bright amber eyes.

Jack grinned and spoke quietly to his new friend: ”Oh, hey there, Mr. Owl. I didn’t mean to disturb you.”

The owl blinked in response, and Jack smiled, entranced by the beauty of the animal. He almost jumped out of the loft when he heard the owl answer him: “Oh, please. ‘Mr. Owl’ is so formal. Call me Owlsy.”

Jack realized that his mouth was hanging open, making him look dumber than he really was, so he closed it. Then he did what any normal person would do in this situation—he answered the talking bird: “Uh, okay. Owlsy, . . . sir.”

The owl had mottled brown and white feathers. His ocherous gaze remained fixed on Jack as the rest of his body waddled around in a slow turn until it was realigned with his head. Then he spoke again: "If you don't mind, what is your name, dear boy?"

"Oh," Jack said in reply, "I don't mind at all. My name's Jack."

"Ah, Jack. It is a pleasure to meet your acquaintance, but do tell me, what brings you all the way out here to my humble abode?" Owlsy asked.

Jack sighed and glanced down for a moment, feeling sheepish, but then replied, "I'm hiding. There's a kid who was chasing me through the woods."

Owlsy nodded slowly and said, "Ah, I see. I see." The owl paused for a moment, thinking owlish thoughts, and then said, "And what set off this whole scenario in the first place, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Nothing really. This boy is a well-known bully. I'm just his current project at the moment." Jack sighed, shaking his head and continued, "All I really did was make the mistake of being seen by him."

The owl sat there for a moment, somehow looking wise as he slowly bobbed his head up and down. Then he said, "So what do you plan to do about your current predicament, Jack?"

Jack slowly shook his head and shrugged, saying, "I don't know. I know that I'm a coward, hiding away in a barn instead of facing him, but I just . . . I just don't know what else to do." Tears precariously pooled in Jack's eyes, threatening to spill over and splash down his cheeks.

"A coward?" Owlsy replied, incredulous. "You don't seem cowardly to me."

Jack replied, "But I was scared, and I ran."

Owlsy replied, "Being scared is a prerequisite for courage, Jack. Bravery is not had by those who never feel frightened, but by those who are firmly gripped by fear, yet they find a way to overcome it. Also, there is wisdom in knowing when to flee and when to fight. There is a time for everything under the sun, you know."

Owlsy paused and Jack sat thoughtfully, considering the owl's words. After a few moments, Owlsy shook out his feathers and said, "I propose that we conduct a thought experiment, Jack."

"A thought experiment?"

"Quite so," Owlsy replied. "In a thought experiment you can think through different scenarios. It's like playing a mental game of chess, in which you consider what moves your opponent is likely to make and plan accordingly. Hoo! Hoo! I do love a good thought experiment. Shall we begin?"

Jack smiled as Owlsy hopped from one foot to another, obviously excited. "Okay, sure."

Owlsy stopped his happy dance so that he could concentrate on the task at hand. "The first thing to do is to get clear on the current state of affairs. How do things stand at this present moment?"

Jack thought for a moment. "I am safe for the time being, but Max is likely still looking for me."

"Okay," said the owl. "So would it be true to say that if he does not find you today, he will seek you out until he is satisfied in some way?"

"Yes," Jack replied.

"Alright, then. What would make him move on and leave you alone? When he gets bored, and he's heard all of the unique sounds you make while he hits you?"

Jack giggled and replied, "Yes, I think so. He gets tired of punching on the same kid, I guess, and moves on."

"One avenue that you could potentially take is to fight back. You fight and thrash like a madman, making him pay a bit of a price for coming after you."

Jack nodded slowly, considering this, and said, "And if I scream like a banshee while I thrash about, acting like a crazy person, that could keep him from wanting to do it again."

Owlsy bobbed his head in affirmation. "Alright, that is one potential way of solving your problem, but what is another route that we could take?" He began to think out loud: "What else would cause him to stop his behavior? He must get something out of it that he values. Perhaps the feeling of empowerment spurs him on, which likely means that he feels vulnerable in other areas of the his life. So it stands to reason that if you show yourself more powerful in some way, he will back off.”

Jack replied, "I think I agree, but how could I appear more powerful? He is bigger and stronger than I am."

Owlsy thought for a moment, and then explosively said, "Hoo! A stupendous idea has come to mind, Jack!" The owl was shifting from one foot to another again, obviously excited. "What you need is a guardian whom you may call upon in times of trouble."

Jack looked at the owl quizzically and asked, "And where would I get a guardian like that?"

Owlsy seemed about to burst with the excitement of his idea: "I could assist you myself, dear boy! Just let that ruffian come after you, and I'll put the fear of owls into him. I am a predatory bird, after all. But, of course, I would not actually harm him. Just scare him."

Jack slowly came around to the idea. "Okay, I think that just might work. And it would help me avoid a great deal of pain. Let's do it, Owlsy!"

---

Jack and Owlsy headed back through the woods, Jack striding along the ground, as was his custom, while Owlsy had taken to the air. The owl spread his coffee-colored wings and glided from tree to tree, keeping pace with the boy.

They had not been traveling long when they spotted Max. Jack was scared. Even though they had a plan, he still trembled at the thought of confronting the other boy. In spite of his fear, he called out to Max.

Max looked up sharply, spied Jack, and began running in his direction. The fact that Jack was standing still gave the bully pause, and he slowed to a walk about twenty feet away.

Max had an ugly sneer on his face when he said, "Oh, boy. You are going to pay for running off. It's just you and me now, Jackie-boy."

Jack swallowed--hard, trying to dislodge the lump of fear that had formed like a solid ball in his throat, and he replied in a shaky voice, "I . . . I don't think so, Max." His voice became more self-assured with every word: "Not this time. I am not alone. I brought a friend."

The piercing shriek that cut through the air startled them both. Owlsy was shooting down toward Max like an arrow, aiming his sharp beak at his unlucky target. At the last moment, the predatory bird pulled up, talons extended and just barely missed ripping bloody furrows across the boy's face.

Max stumbled back and fell to the ground, but quickly decided that remaining supine exposed too much of his delicate parts to the fierce creature, so he rolled over and quickly regained his feet. He began spinning in circles and trying to look everywhere at once. He could not spot the owl anywhere. In a breathless, trembling voice, he said to Jack, "What is that thing? Is it some sort of attack bird you've trained? Are you trying to kill me?!"

Jack almost felt sorry for the boy. Almost. This needed to happen. Jack called out toward the trees, "Okay, Owlsy. I'm thinking that if we take out his eyes, he won't hurt anyone anymore. What are your thoughts?"

As if Jack had issued an attack command, Owlsy darted downward once more, heading straight for Max's face as he loosed another shrill screech. Max's countenance was the perfect picture of fear--eyes unnaturally wide; mouth open in a soundless scream; the corners of his mouth turned downward in a dread-filled grimace.

Max ducked low and Owlsy sailed over him.

Max gutturally screamed, "Call him off, Jack! Call him off!" The former bully was now on the ground, weeping and terrified of what might come next. Jack walked slowly over to him as Max began sputtering apologies: "Please! Please, Jack! I'm so sorry! I'll never come after your again!"

Jack stopped next to the pitiful boy, exhibiting a calm, assertive mien. Then he quietly spoke to Max with newly forged steel evident in his tone: "That is not enough, Max. I want you to stop bullying other kids too." Jack shifted down to one knee so that he could be at eye level with his former tormentor. "What you are feeling right now, is what we feel when you come after us. You are done with that page in your story. Is that clear?"

Max let out a grateful-sounding sob, and nodded with much exaggeration. Jack smiled a small smile and helped Max stand to his feet. They walked back out of the woods together, talking about Owlsy along the way. The avian protector listened with keen interest, as he glided smoothly from branch to branch.