Mercy's Flight

Today was the day!  I could feel it in my bones and feathers.  This was definitely the perfect day… It was the day when Mercy Screech Owl would leave the nest and spread her wings, and all would take notice and applaud.  I peered up at the sky, through the elm leaves, bending and swaying in the gentle warm breeze of early July, in the Adirondack Mountains, near Lake George.  Shadows flittered across the branches and down into my nest, as the clouds moved across the ocean blue expanse above me.  A leaf fluttered down, from higher up the elm we lived in, brushing my head and ear tufts as it traveled the long slow road to the ground below.  No one could prevent me from taking flight today.  This day was made for my flight!

I felt brave.  I was strong.  I knew I would conquer the world.  Today was Mercy’s Flight and it would go down in history for other young screech owls learn from.  I was prepared to spread my wings; my newly formed adult wings.  Man, was I proud of them…  Had anyone seen anything so elegant as MY wings?  I bounced from foot to foot as I waited with anxious excitement for the perfect time to begin. 

“Come on Mercy!”

“What do you think; that it’s Sunday?”

I could hear my siblings in the roost behind me, cackling and taunting as I fluffed out my wings, making sure my feathers were in proper order.  It would not do for such a historical event in Eastern Screech Owl History to be marked by the star performing with matted wings!  What a disgrace.  I turned my head slightly to the left, upon hearing my mother give a soft encouraging hoot.  Her eyes, those wonderful liquid brown eyes, softened with love and encouragement as she watched from behind me. 

I turned once more to face forward, fluffing my chest feathers and strutting boldly to the edge of our home.  I stood there for several minutes allowing the breeze to drift over the tufts of my ears, all the while I continued to stare up at the sky with wonder.  What beauty there was in the ever changing and forming clouds…  Soon I would be able to walk amongst those puffs of pillow like quality...  I could almost feel the delicate pathway beneath my feet…

“Wait… what…” I paused as I looked quickly around “Did anyone feel a rain drop?  I could swear I felt a rain drop.” Glancing upwards I peered with intensity, once more at the clouds… “Does that one look awfully grey to any of you?”  I asked my sisters and brother as the breeze lifted and swayed, playing with my feathers.

I felt my eyes pulled to look over the edge of the nest, following the path downwards towards the ground.  I swallowed hard a queasy sensation deep within my stomach rose up engulfing my very being, as I could taste this morning’s breakfast of worms and digested chipmunk flow upwards into my throat and mouth. Not wishing to embarrass myself in front of my siblings I swallowed once more, gulping down the regurgitated food, leaving a burning sensation pouring down the back of my throat.

 As I stood there trying to contain the anxiety building up within me, I could feel my legs begin to quiver, threatening to give out on and force me to collapse; or even possibly fall over the edge of the nest, plummeting downwards towards my death.  The world began to tilt and sway and I felt as if my chest began to constrict…

 “Cannot breathe…” I gasped out, fluttering my shaking wings, even as I stumbled backwards from the edge of the nest…

 I could hear my heart beating as loud as a drum.  In truth, if I did not know any better it would explode from my chest, taking flight of its own.  Just this thought and image of my heart escaping my body, leaving me a dried shell husk of a screech owl left me coughing as I could not get the air to come into my small body.

“Momma, Mercy is having an attack again!”

“Knew she couldn’t do it. “

“I swear she is never going to leave the nest.”

Their voices, faint and far away, but no less hurtful, while I focused on trying to breathe.  I managed to turn myself away from the edge and stumble over to where momma stood waiting, her wings spread out.  I curled myself close to her body, feeling my breathing slowly beginning to return to its normal self,  as the tightening of my chest finally began to relax...  Once more back in the safety of momma’s loving embrace, I shut my eyes, praying for sleep; where I could dream of dancing and walking on those cloud puffs…

Today… Today was perhaps not the right day.  I think tomorrow is a better day.