04/30/2026
Part 2 from the nest:
The next morning, everything made a little more sense.
So many people had told me they rarely saw the dad of this owl family. Some even wondered if he was around at all.
But I had seen him… more than once.
One moment in particular stands out. It was early morning, just as dawn was beginning to break. I noticed him downriver, standing guard. He was so still, so perfectly blended into the broken branches, that I almost convinced myself he was part of the tree.
And then—suddenly—he moved.
An eagle had come around the bend.
It all happened too fast for me to even think about my camera. He launched straight toward it and chased it off, protecting his family without hesitation.
What others saw as absence… I saw differently.
No, he wasn’t out front feeding the babies or encouraging their first flight. But he was there—quietly, faithfully—serving and protecting from behind the scenes.
It reminded me so much of the roles my husband and I have lived out in our own home.
He was up early, off to work, carrying the weight of providing.
I was home in the middle of the day-to-day—the mess, the moments, the visible pieces.
Different roles. Same purpose.
And sometimes, the ones we don’t see the most… are the ones holding everything together. 🦉
