Summerland Local Pens Poem from New York City News Headline

In honor of Rocky, the Saw-Whet Owl found in the Rockefeller Christmas tree on November 25, 2020

Asleep in the day
Keeping watch through the night
Hiding deep in a tree
Staying far out of sight

I could not have known
There was something to fear
While I perched on my branch
As the woodsman drew near

With the crack of a blade
Happening ever so quickly
My home fell to the ground
I felt dizzy and sickly

In no time at all
I was wrapped in the tree
Then on to a truck
There was no time to flee

For days we drove on
No one knew I was there
The noises and horns
Made me frightened and scared

No water or food
And worse, no way to fly
If I was a human
For sure I would cry

Then without any warning
In the midst of a town
The truck came to a stop
And they took the tree down

I think that they thought
As they lifted it high
They could bring it to life
They sure seemed to try

Soon they had the tree standing
and took off the wrapping
It was then they discovered
Just what they’d been trapping

For deep in the branches
Buried inside the tree
Was a wee little creature
And that creature was ME!

I was tired and shaken
but they took gentle care
then they let me fly free
with my story to share

So I leave you with this
and hope you will believe
sometimes we’re afraid
but this feeling does leave

Hold on tight as you go
These are challenging days
Be patient and wise
Reflect on “Owl” ways

I hope you might hang me
High up in your tree
And when you need courage
Then just think of me.

Author, Ellen Walker-Matthews

A bit about the story that made headlines in November

The tiny Saw-whet owl was named Rockefeller after it was found by a worker setting up the holiday tree on Nov. 16 at Manhattan’s Rockefeller Center. The owl was apparently trapped in the 75-foot-tall (23-meter-tall) Norway spruce when it was cut down 170 miles (275 kilometers) north, in upstate New York on Nov. 12.

The female owl, initially thought to be male, was uninjured but hadn’t eaten for at least three days when she was discovered and sent to Ravensbeard Wildlife Center in the Hudson Valley town of Saugerties. There, a rehabilitator nursed her back to health for a week with plenty of mice before Rocky was cleared to continue her migratory journey south.