The Two Owls Lodge

The thick blanket of snow was a pale, shimmery blue in the moonlight, like a scene from some animated film about Ice Queens and Winter wonderlands. It was around midnight, and there was no wind, the pine trees were as still as statues in a Nordic ice sculpture garden. The temperature was well below zero, but Alba’s heavy parka kept her warm, as she watched her breath billow out in dense, white puffs. Suddenly she heard the faint cry of an owl off in the distance, probably on the hunt for a rabbit or fox. When she looked out towards the sound, she could see an extraordinary distance, much farther than seemed normal. Maybe it was the calm, clear air combined with the surreal illumination of the full Wolf Moon. Then she heard the terrified squeal of a small animal freshly snatched up by a predator. “That owl must’ve caught a rabbit.” she mused, as she wondered how close the grisly scene took place. Her human mind was generating a mixed response of disgust and sympathy for the frightened, struggling prey creature. Her spirit mind was viewing the scene from the owl’s perspective, as though she, Alba, were the predator savoring her fresh catch, pure instinct and biological hunger satiation were the only “feelings”. For just a moment she was an owl, and she was completely disoriented when she came out of her trance. It was as if all of her senses were magnified tenfold that night, and she had been having these strange spells a lot lately, but didn’t think too much of it. It was likely her close attunement with Nature and all of her creatures, she guessed. “Alba, come on in before you get frostbit.” Grandpa Joseph called out to her from the oversized, split log door. She snapped out of her pondering and headed back into the warm, comforting lodge and it’s fresh pine scent intermingling with toasted firewood. “Let’s call it a night.” Joseph whispered as he gave her a hug, then headed up to his room with Hany on his arm. Alba went over to Waoka to bid him a good night, as well, then off to bed.

Alba was a petite, raven-haired girl with piercing peridot eyes shining out from deep-set sockets. She rarely smiled, as she was always a serious, shy, and sad child. Her Lakota Sioux father had disappeared before her first birthday, and her Irish-American mother was absentee, a raging alcoholic. Alba got her father’s hair and mother’s eyes, and she prayed for her father’s kind and caring personality. Her grandfather was a Lakota Elder and Medicine man, who honored and revered Mother Nature, especially the owls. For his clan, Owl was seen as a spirit guide, protector, and giver of psychic powers. One closely connected to Owl medicine could call on their assistance in healing ceremonies and practices. Joseph Grey Owl was such a man, a true healer. Alba and Joseph ran a small, quiet inn on the edge of the woods, far from civilization. They almost never had a full house, especially in the Winter months. Hanyewi is an elegant, elder female Barn owl, Waoka a huge, male, one-eyed Great Horned owl.

Each was injured, rescued, and living with Joseph for as long as Alba remembered. Hany stayed around the barn most days, but Joseph brought her in at night. She had a damaged wing, so couldn’t hunt as well anymore. Joseph would feed her after the guests were done in the tavern, let her sleep upstairs, then take her back outside each morning. She could still catch a mouse or rat here and there, but Joseph liked to spoil her with whatever raw delicacy he had in the kitchen. Sometimes quail, rabbit, or squirrel. On special occasions, like his wife’s birthday, venison or elk. Grandmother had passed over before Alba was born, but Joseph still celebrated her life regularly. Alba believed that Hany was her Owl, and that was why Joseph adored her so. Waoka, on the other hand, was an ornery one, prone to biting and screeching at guests now and then. If any man got too friendly with Alba, Waoka would appear on the back of the chair nearest the girl. His presence alone was very intimidating, as he would stare you down with that one, big, yellow eye. If the man in question dared to reach out to try to touch Alba, he could easily lose a finger. One drunk guy who grabbed Alba’s rear end ran out of the tavern with his deeply gashed, bloody arm dripping all the way, threatening to sue Joseph for his injury. Nothing ever came of it, but the story spread and people, especially men, kept their distance from both Alba and Waoka.

The lodge and barn were the only structures for miles. Joseph owned over a hundred acres of forest, with high hills to the north, and a wide river to the east. It is a federally protected wilderness area, so no public hunting or camping allowed. The only guests or visitors were the few locals who enjoyed the food and camaraderie of their long-time friend, a few tourists (primarily in the Summer months), and random travelers on their way to somewhere else. Good thing Joseph didn’t rely on them for an income. He inherited the land from his mother, and made a decent living from his healing services. A gifted shaman and intuitive, he worked with both humans and animals. He had a few steady clients that included ranchers, veterinarians, and a couple of rescue organizations nearby. He was well-respected and trusted by all who knew him, and could heal almost anything from injuries, to illness, to trauma and behavioral issues. One of the rescues he worked with dealt primarily with birds of prey(eagles, hawks, owls, etc..), and he was especially attuned to their needs. People called him the “Owl Whisperer” for fun, but it was a fact. He did communicate with the animals, and they with him.

The Grey Owl clan had lived in the Dakotas for centuries, and many evaded the colonists when they tried to drive them off of their lands. They were stealthy and wise, easily outwitting the white man. Joseph was the first to set up an actual business catering to outsiders, the Two Owls Lodge, on their Dakota land. His family had carried a deep distrust for white people, and made very little effort to engage with them in any capacity. Joseph was much more open and accepting of others, and genuinely liked all people. He enjoyed hearing their diverse stories, tales of adventure, joys, losses, and especially the absurd. He loved a good story about someone’s misadventures and folly. “Laughter is the best medicine.” he’d always say. When he laughed, the whole inn shook, because he was a tall, stately man with a deep, bellowing voice. It always triggered the laughter of everyone else in the place, even if they hadn’t heard the joke. Generally, it was a light, friendly, happy atmosphere at the lodge and tavern. That’s why Alba’s sullen, unaffected demeanor was so odd. People just couldn’t understand why she seemed so down all of the time. They didn’t know her story or how she felt. Only a fellow half-breed, unwanted, relentlessly bullied outcast could possibly have a clue. Despite the fact that her grandfather had raised her well, taken great care of her, and unconditionally loved and adored her, she just couldn’t shake the trauma of abandonment and abuse. Knowing that her own mother had no love for her was devastating. That kind of rejection leaves a deep, emotional scar on the heart that is almost impossible to heal.

Alba was born to a young couple who were not ready for a child. She was definitely not planned, totally unwanted by the mother. Her father, Jay, was prepared to marry and take on the responsibility of his actions, but the mother was a true narcissist, a full-blown alcoholic, and wanted nothing to do with a baby. In fact, she was planning on giving the baby up for adoption as soon as she gave birth. Jay and she fought for nine months, right up until the birth of their little girl, and Joseph intervened. He insisted on taking the baby home and raising her with Jay, because the mother, Blair, was clearly unfit. She drank and smoked throughout the pregnancy, got a DUI, and randomly threatened to run away and give birth somewhere that Jay couldn’t find them. Determined to leave the baby at whatever hospital she ended up in, she made it very clear that she did not want a child, ever. She had come from a terrible home, full of fights and abuse, and her father was also a nasty drunk. It was no surprise that she had turned out just like him. It was actually a blessing that Joseph took Alba in because she would likely not have survived a life with Blair. With Joseph and Jay, she would be loved and cared for, always kept safe.

Joseph was a responsible, protective young father up until then, and took many jobs to provide for her. Joseph could easily support them both, but Jay was determined to take care of his own child. He was never one to just live off of his parents. One night, he went out for a late shift at the warehouse. Blair had called, wanting to know how Alba was doing, which was strange for her. Jay agreed to meet her after work at a nearby pub to chat. When he got there, she was already wasted, stumbling and slurring, completely oblivious as to why Jay was there. “What do you want?” she snarled as she took another chug of beer. “We were going to talk about Alba, remember?” Jay said with a tinge of frustration. He knew it was pointless to try to have a conversation with a drunk, so he just walked out. Blair yelled out, “Now what? You’re just going to ignore me?” and chased him out to his car. He just wanted to go home and not deal with the harpy in the parking lot, but she was on a drunken tear, getting more aggressive every second. “You think you’re so much better than me, eh? Can’t even talk to me now?” She pulled a small switchblade out of her back pocket and sliced the air in front of his face. He dodged that swipe, but then she lunged at him and the knife went right into his left eye. “AAAHHH! What the f*#+! Somebody call the cops!” Jay yelled at the top of his lungs as he stumbled back, hand over his bloody eye. Blair was shocked by her own actions, dropped the knife, and took off. Nobody ever saw her again, and Jay was lucky to have only lost the eye. Any deeper and the blade could have pierced his brain. He wore an eye patch for a while, then he disappeared, too. People would speculate, making up stories about how he went to hunt down Blair for revenge. But Joseph knew better, so he just laughed at the silly busy-bodies. He knew that Jay was much closer than anyone thought. He would never abandon his little girl. He would always be keeping a watchful eye on her. That’s about the time that Waoka showed up at the lodge.

Alba would be 18 soon, and she was starting to feel things changing inside. Was it just hormones? Was she going to turn out like her psychotic mother? Just the thought of that made her cringe. Although Joseph wasn’t the type of person to disparage others, he told Alba just enough for her to understand why that woman was not in her life. He wanted her to know how dangerous she was, and that she was far better off without her. He wanted to make sure Alba never thought it was her fault, or that she did anything wrong. After all, how could an infant do anything? So why did she feel so angry and restless all of a sudden? And this thing with her heightened senses? Maybe it was some kind of anxiety. She certainly felt much calmer now that she had graduated from that horrible high school. That was its own sort of hellish experience, never knowing what creative taunting she would have to endure on a daily basis. She was tormented by the Lakota kids for being half white, and shunned by the white kids for being half Indian. She had one friend who was very popular, a tall, handsome Lakota boy who excelled at everything. He always stood up for her when he caught people bullying her, but they didn’t hang out much. She was withdrawn and kept to herself while he was outgoing and always surrounded by classmates. Now that she was done with school, they hadn’t seen each other or spoken in months. He was likely already off to college out of state, so she didn’t think much about him. She really didn’t think she would ever see him again.

There was a loud rap on the door, then he walked in, remembering it was a lodge. The few people eating breakfast, as well as Alba and Waoka, were all staring at him now. “Hey Alba, how’s it going?” the jovial young man said as he walked over to give her a friendly hug. Waoka screeched loudly just as Mato (he went by Matt), reached out his long arms to encompass Alba. They gave each other an affectionate, I’ve-missed-you embrace, and Waoka stayed on his roost. The overly protective owl sensed that Alba was safe and the boy was harmless. Everyone went back to their meals as the two old classmates went back to the kitchen to catch up. “I thought you were at University somewhere out of state.” Alba said quizzically. “Oh, I decided to stay local, doing my 2 year degree at community college.” said Matt, smiling broadly, excited to know that Alba had been thinking about him. “I am actually taking a wildlife management course right now, and doing some research on owls. I thought of your grandpa and wanted to come by to see if I could interview him, maybe get some more leads on local sanctuaries.” Alba’s face didn’t change, but her fluttering heart toned down once she realized that Matt wasn’t there to see her. “Oh, sure, I think he would be cool with that. He loves talking about his owls.”

She led him out to the barn where Joseph was tending to the horses. There was a beautiful, older lady with a long, silver braid standing at a stall, gently stroking the Palomino’s soft muzzle. “Hi, have you seen my grandpa, Joseph?” Alba asked the woman, as a puzzled look came over her. She thought it must have been a guest who liked horses or something. Joseph came down from the hay loft, “Hey there, what are you two up to?”. Matt went over and grabbed Joseph’s hand nervously, shaking it so hard that it startled him. What is he acting so weird about, Alba was thinking, simultaneously wondering who that old woman was. Joseph was at a brief loss for words, the woman was quietly smiling at Alba, and Matt was blurting out his whole story about owls, school, research, and whatever came into his head. It didn’t even occur to Alba that Matt was actually nervous about meeting her grandpa because he really did like her, alot. He did want to see her, and meeting with Joseph was just a great excuse. Joseph nodded his head in agreement to the interview, then motioned for the lady to come over. “Alba, I want you to meet my friend, Hanna.” The woman held one of Alba’s hands in both of hers, and a deeply familiar, loving energy engulfed her entire being. She had a sudden flash in her mind of flying over the forest, following closely behind another owl, instinctively knowing that she was one, too. She felt like she knew this woman, not just an acquaintance, but as if they were closely related. “Nice to meet you.” the words rolled out, almost unconsciously, as Alba stared into Hanna’s dark, mesmerizing eyes. The entire exchange, although a mere few seconds, was totally overwhelming and brought tears to both women. Joseph and Matt were quietly watching, not wanting to disturb what seemed like a reunion of long-lost relatives. “Ok, so let’s all head inside for a bite to eat, and you(Matt) and I can chat.” They all four went into the tavern and Waoka flew over to Hanna immediately, like he knew her well. They spoke without words, nodding and blinking at each other in recognition. Alba would soon find out who the “Two Owls” really were.