A Great Horned Owl

I was walking with a group through a regional park south of Santa Rosa; the great oaks grew in clusters along the path that meandered through the grassland. Up ahead near the trail, one oak tree in particular, whose trunk must have been about five feet around, forked into two trunks rather close to the ground. Sitting, within 10 feet of us, on the half of the trunk growing out to side was a giant great horned owl. Now, this was mid-morning on a sunny day in Spring, and owls just don't sit in plain view of anyone in the middle of the day. Folks had stopped to watch him, check him out. Was he injured? Should we call a ranger? What was he doing just sitting there? I approached the cluster of folks and turned to see what they were studying so intently. The sight of this majestic bird caused me to gasp. The folks continued on their walk and I stood transfixed by the sight of this great horned owl, sitting, being on its trunk-perch. I took a few steps sideways to line up my sight with the line of sight of the owl. He saw me. His eyes connected with mine. We were in communication instantly. I became the owl. He was amused, his Being was grand and expansive. The quiet of the night was within him. I saw through his eyes the city nearby all lit up in the darkness of the night, which is his time. I flew over the city as an owl and experienced the deepness of this bird's awareness flying as a silent witness to the rush of the people place. He was amused, and the Buddha was in him, so calm, so unaffected by anything. There was an infinity within him and it became me. A calm washed over me, rose up within me. I was gifted by the essence of owl. So grateful.