While driving on a wet and murky night, my husband, Jesse, and I were startled by something inexplicable rocketing into our windshield. Jesse backed the car, and I vaulted out to search for this mysterious projectile that I felt had to be a bird. The headlights revealed a beautiful and delicate creature, a saw-whet owl, lying on the side of the road. I gently picked him up and tucked him into my sweater, aware of his fast-beating heart against mine. I was heartbroken to feel the stillness when, moments later, this lovely, wild creature’s heart stopped. That tiny owl bewitched me, leaving an imprint on my still-beating heart.

Bill Streeter, Executive Director of the Delaware Valley Raptor Center, was kind enough to allow me to work with a live saw-whet named Mortimer. Working with this delightful owl enabled me to feel again the essence of the tiny, feathered creature that briefly came into my life that rainy night.