Encounters of the Bird Kind - The Owl
A BARN OWL is among a number of owls seen in the Ojai Valley area. (Liz Noffsinger/FreeDigitalPhotos.net)
By Laurent Weichberger
When my wife Lilly was pregnant with our son Cyprus and near the end of our stay as Manager/Caretakers in 2006, we would frequently hear owls at Meher Mount.
One morning, around 5:00 a.m., I woke up and made my coffee and heard an owl hoot-hooting. I quietly opened the door to the porch which looked out towards Baba's Tree. There on a power line I saw in perfect silhouette a giant owl, against the dawn.
I walked as close as I could without startling him away, and saw with incredible clarity that each time he hooted he would put his whole body into the act, literally pushing his chest and head up and forward, so that the hoot would be projected outwards.
It was an amazing gift, and we have long associated our son Cyprus with owls since then.