A Night out with Owls
I struggled down from the loft with a HUGE sheet of MDF, upon which was drawn a tailless donkey.
‘What ARE you doing?’ Ioan (my daughter) asked as the MDF and I fell from the loft.
‘It’s your birthday next week, this is the ‘pin the tail on the donkey board.’
‘I am 10 this year, don’t you think I’m a bit old for pin the tail on the donkey?’
This can’t be so. An end of an era. No more pass-the-parcel, treasure hunts, or musical bumps.
Recovering quickly, I reply,’ We have to celebrate your birthday, what would you like to do instead, bowling, cinema?’
‘I have an idea,’ Iona reaches for her school bag. A dogeared leaflet emerges, ‘Nuit de la Chouette.’
She continues, “I could invite Louisa and Madenn for dinner, we could go to the forest at Monteneuf to see the owls and then they could come back here for a sleepover.’
What an excellent idea!
I start to go downstairs, and Iona says…’ eh, I don’t need a clown, rabbit, or guitar birthday cake this year… a round one would be OK… as long as it’s chocolate.’
Point taken…
There is a village hall on the outskirts of the forest at Monteneuf. Three owls were waiting for us.
A young woman with a strappy top, large baggy trousers, and a tattoo on her shoulder told us all about her owls. Did you know an owl eats 2 – 3 mice each night? Owls also feed on hedgehogs (a particular favourite), rabbits, and even foxes.
An hour and a half quickly passed and we moved outside into the forest to hear the owls.
A fantastic evening was had by all.
