Thought and Owl

The connection between humans and animals is truly a special one as demonstrated in Tim Bowling’s “Snowy Owl After Midnight. ” The speaker in the short story feels closely connected to the owl as he walks in the forest at night. The speaker believes that the owl “waits for [him]” and that the owl’s “blood stirs/ at [his] presence. ” Also, the owl seems to understand the “heightened smell of joy and fear/ [the speaker’s] bones give off.

Since the night is “so quiet,” the speaker feels that he and the owl are the only two “awake,” Strengthening their bond even more. Both the owl and the hunter are on a search for food hence they feel a sense of connection with each other during the long dark night. As they travel together, the speaker remembers the “months” they’ve spent circling in “each other’s silence. ” The speaker has a sudden urge to break the silence and talk to the owl as a friend. He longs to express to the beautiful winged creature about his “boyish dream” that consisted of the “beating heart of a snowman.

Furthermore, the speaker wishes to hear the thoughts of the owl about the “blood” that is on the earth and what the owl would think if he knew the deaths that could be caused by the “clipped, pale hands” of the hunter. In some ways, the hunter desires to be like the owl. As quoted anonymously, “A wise old owl sat on an oak; The more he saw the less he spoke; The less he spoke the more he heard; Why aren’t we like that wise old bird? “As the “dark and silent” night goes on, the hunter and the owl loyally remain by each other’s side.