Cornbread and Sunshine!!!!

Panicked, sweaty, and out of breath they dive under Sue’s bed. It was the safest place or rather the place their dad thoroughly dispelled their fear of monsters of hiding. “Papa, papa, papa” they shrilled. So I shrilled. They heard my eerie screaming every few weeks. Inconsistency is the key to terror. I complimented my vocals with a few taps on the window for good measure. Then I perched and watched my orchestration.

Last time teary eyed Sue woke blue eyed Ben and they rushed together pass the window and out of the bedroom to that of their father’s room. That time Ben heard me as well. No more was he confident in his platitudes of “you had a bad dream Susie, that’s all”. Tears, snot, and vice like hugging of “papa’s” legs was enough to rouse the 6’5” 220lb father for an inspection. With the lantern lit and a child gripping either leg they walked down the hallway to the children’s room. Their shadows danced on the walls like that of mice running across the nave in the moonlight. The room was scant of furniture. Only the two beds and a rocking horse. The father lifted each bed and illuminated the nooks with effervescent flame only to find a baby doll and lone lost sock. He then hugged his children, kissed them goodnight, and placed the rocking horse in the hallway. That was then, this is now.

“Papa, papa, papa.” Sleepily the father replied “What is it my loves?” “Papa, papa, papa” they shrilled again. So I shrilled yet again. “The monster is back” cried the children. The hurried heavy footsteps of a fathers approach came to a crashing halt. The rocking horse rocked his world as he tripped over it in the darkness. THUMP THUMP goes the floor as the father fell. I scream and screech again with great glee and laughter. Sue and Ben scream and cry out in fear, “papa, papa, papa... did the monster get you, are you ok?” “Cornbread and Sunshine!!!!” exclaimed the father. Lesser men would have inserted an expletive. “I’m ok, I’m ok.... a monster didn’t get me, I tripped on Blue Lightning is all. I’m coming my loves.” As the father enters the room Sue and Ben rush from under the bed and pounce with renewed tenacity to their familiar perch at either side of their fathers legs. “Cornbread and Sunshine!!!!” yelped the father, for Sue and Ben latched on to his legs in the exact spots where moments before he injured falling. I screeched with glee and both Sue and Ben cried out in fear “papa, papa, papa the monster.” The father turned his head to the right and met my eyes. I turned my head away a full 360 degrees and met the fathers eyes again. “There’s no monster, it’s just a barn owl my loves.” “Owls hoot papa, owls hoot.... we heard screaming” replied the children. “We will talk about this in the morning” replied the father, “come sleep in my room tonight.”

That was my first interaction with the father. It was fun playing games with just Sue and Ben, but now that I had met the father I wanted to play with him too. I named our interactions “Screech and Scream”. I told and retold my friends about it. “Cornbread and Sunshine!!!!” I screeched, and a cacophony of hoots would ensue echoing through the woods. I would scream, “Papa, Papa monster” and the rucous would begin again. We had more fun than the fox had in the hen house.

A few weeks passed and I decided to return to the little farm house. I invited all my friends to the occasion. They wanted to play “Screech and Scream” too. It was about 9pm before everyone arrived. In total there was 61 of us. The game was supposed to be simple. Screech and observe. We shrill and then Sue and Ben were supposed to scream and yell for the father. Then we were supposed to watch the father look for monsters under the bed. We were going to laugh and then they were supposed to scream and then we were going to laugh and listen to the kids scream some more. Everyone agreed it was a plan we could really sink our talons into.

I flew over to my perch near the window. I could see that Sue and Ben were fast asleep. I flapped to signal everyone to their places. All my friends stood side by side. 10 across and 6 high. One owl a top the head of the other owl, each owl wing to wing.

TAP TAP goes the window as I tried to wake both Sue and Ben. They remain motionless. “Screeeeech Screeeeeeech SCREEECH,” I say. That does the trick. Sue screams, “monster papa.... monster!!!” “SCREEEEECH SCREEEEEECH”, I reply. Ben joins in, “Papa, papa, papa!!!!.... monster!” “I’m coming my loves”, replies the father. Heavy hurried footsteps rush towards the pleeing children. THUMP THUMP THUMP goes the floor as the father fell yet again. “Cornbread and Sunshine!!!!” yelps the father. Sue and Ben exclaim, “PAPA PAPA.... did the monster get you!?” Me and my friends erupt in laughter. Our dissonance shakes the windowpane. “No my loves.... Blue Lightning, I tripped on Blue Lighting.” As the father gathers himself and stands he turned his head to the right and met our eyes. We turned our heads away a full 360 degrees and met the fathers eyes again. “SCREEEEECH SCREEEEEECH SCREEEECH!!!!” We say in unison. “Cornbread and Sunshine!!!!!!..... get under the bed my loves!!!” “Screech screeeeech SCREEEEEECH” we harmonize. The windowpane shutters violently. I peer through the window not able to see the father nor Sue nor Ben. “SCREEEEEECH SCREEEEEECH SCREEEEEECH,” we exclaimed! Utter silence from the bedroom. No screams and no cries. “SCREEEEEECH SCREEEEEECH SCREEEEEECH SCREEEEEECH”, we yell!

After about 30 minutes of yelling towards Sue and Ben’s bedroom and not hearing any screams or cries we got bored. “Screech and Scream” had lost it novelty. My friends left me there all alone on my perch. I decided to see what the fox was doing. I mean at least the hens were making some noise.