Katherine Gallagher
Owl on the Nursery Windowsill
The owl stared hard. It gave no answers.
My mother had been gone for days.
I faced the owl; it only stared
and blinked. Nanny said we’d see
our Mummy soon. I told my sister
she was coming back. I feared
the owl might fly away.
But it only blinked and blinked.
Then Nanny said we could draw it
if we liked. She got us down white paper
and some pens. My sister cried
for she was only three. She drew the owl
in criss-cross lines of red. My owl was brown
with a ring around each eye.
The hard wind crashed and whined
against the glass, rattling panes
so we could scarcely hear. I wanted
our quiet owl to stay. Nanny said
we could give the pictures to our Mum.
I told my sister she would be back soon.
When I looked again, the owl had flown.
Page(s) 25
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