A Cup of Coffee

The story of Owl

This is not a story about fitting in. Rather the opposite, it is a story about low self-image and how it sometimes tricks people into isolation. This Haitian folktale appears in a wonderful book called "The Magic Orange Tree", retold by Diane Wolkenstein. I am going to try to tell it in my own words.

Once upon a time, there lived Owl. He considered himself very ugly. His eyes, he thought, were too big. His beak, he thought, was strangely shaped. He was so ashamed of himself that he chose to get around only at night, when no one could see him in the darkness.
But one day, he met this girl. Though she could not see his face at all, they started chatting about things like poetry, their dreams. (If it were today, I would say that they had met in the internet). Soon they were madly in love. The girl had never met anyone who could understand her so well. But her mom was worried. She was worried that this Owl never showed his face. (If it were today, she would be worried that he was some kind of internet freak). Mom had a bright idea. She decided to throw a party for Owl. As the guest of honor, he would be forced to show up.
When Owl learned that, he was desperate. At first, he didn't want to come at all. Then he thought and found a solution. He asked his cousin, the Rooster, to go to the party. He should go first and tell that Owl had hurt himself on the way. Rooster did that. The girl was very disappointed. But all of sudden, there was Owl! He arrived at the party wearing a huge hat that hid his face. He introduced himself to the girl's parents and explained that he had hurt his eyes on a thornbush and needed to keep the hat to protect him from the sun. Mother didn't like that story.
But the girl didn't care. She dragged Owl to the dance floor. He only had time to ask Rooster to warn him of sunrise (he wanted to be gone by then). The girl embraced Owl and he discovered, much to his surprise, that he could dance wonderfully well with her.
They danced and danced and danced. They ignored the rest of the world around them. What Owl didn't know was that Rooster was also having a good time. And he forgot his promise of warning Owl that sunrise was coming.
Owl was still dancing when the first ray of light pierced the woods. He was surprised. But before he could run away, the mother came from behind him and removed his hat. His face was completely exposed. Ashamed, Owl ran into the forest. He didn't even hear the desperate cries of his beloved. No one ever saw him again.

The girl sank in sorrow. For a long time, life made no sense for her. But eventually she recovered. She moved on. And she married Rooster. I have to tell you that the Girl was very happy and content with the match. But every day, in the early morning, when the first rays of light pierced the wood, she remembered Owl and wondered sadly about his wanderings. For, in all of her life, she had never seen such beautiful eyes.

posted by Livia de Almeida @ 8:32 PM