A recent trip to Scotland had many surprises, including a wonderful interlude with a couple of owls. Yes, owls. And no, it wasn’t on a walkabout in the verdant Scottish countryside – it was smack-dab in the middle of Edinburgh’s Royal Mile.
The beautiful and wise-looking creatures were surveying a small crowd outside of Gladstone’s Land, a museum run by the National Trust for Scotland.
The human handler for the owls looked wise, too, and shared stories and myths about them, which piqued my interest.
Back at home, curious, I realized that the only thing I knew about owls was that it really bugged my mom when a family of them made a nest in the rafters of our home at the beach when I was growing up (I thought it was kindof cool, but I didn’t have to deal with the situation). I did some Googling, and learned that owls have inspired myths and legends for centuries on several continents. Bad stuff like stealing babies, seeing into the darkness of the human soul, being a harbinger of death and doom … and good stuff, too, such as clairvoyance, bringing enlightenment and truth through dreams, symbolizing wisdom and strength. Looking at the closeup of one of the owls I met that day in Edinburgh, I can see why they’ve captured imaginations through the ages. There is an undeniable sense of mystery and knowing in those eyes, as though she actually could see right through our souls to the other side.
She-Owl: a Haiku
soaring through the skies
holding secrets, truths and lies
in amber-wise eyes
Resources
- A cool owl poem: the Owl Girl
- The Scottish Owl Center
- Gladstone’s Land (museum on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile)
- The International Own Center (in Minnesota, USA)
- Post: Owl Medicine – Wisdom from the Ancestors
- Post: The Owls are Back
I didn’t have time to visit the Gladstone’s Land museum, but it is on the list for a return trip to Edinburgh.
Copyright 2017, Glover Gardens Cookbook
I have been to Gladstone’s Land – it’s definitely worth visiting. And have you been to Mary King’s Close, also on the Royal Mile?