Callie - Most Beautiful

You’ve been waiting for this day to come. Your very first day at the job. It was simple pay, but it was so much more than that. It was an opportunity, it was an adventure, and most of all… the entire job was SURROUNDED by birds. You had loved birds your whole life. You drew them on the sides of tests during school, you watched YouTube videos on them flying through the air, you’ve sketched out every bird you’ve ever seen on your walk home from High School. Your whole life, you’ve dreamed of working at this very building, and they finally hired you after a flawless interview.

The ISPB. The International Safe Place for Birds. You’ve read about the building in newspapers and you’ve seen documentaries on the building throughout your elementary school years, but you had never seen it up close. Everything you’ve done has led you up to this moment. Move out of your parent's house, successfully survive through college, earn a Master's Degree in Ornithology, and move into a cozy apartment here in Normal, Illinois. At last, your dreams have come true.

You take one final deep breath of the clean, outside air before smiling and walking into the building, closing the door behind you carefully. You weren’t sure what to wear, so you chose to wear an ok-looking black shirt with small sequin flower patterns and denim bootcut jeans, with black tennis shoes. As you walk into the building, all you can smell is the smell of bird crap and an odd aura of chili. The front desk lady, apparently her name was “Carrol”, looks up at you with a smile that seemed stressed and tired.

“How can I help you?” She asked you. You were still amazed by the fact that there were free-roaming birds everywhere. American Robins, Black Terns, and Black-Capped Chickadee everywhere. Mainly small birds, but you were still amazed. Carrol tilted her head, losing her smile. “Miss?” You looked at her and chuckled nervously.

“Sorry, It’s my first day here.” You informed her. She nodded and pointed toward the hallway doors toward the back of the room. “Thanks.” You walked toward the hallway, still looking at the birds in the room. There had to be at least 10 of each different bird. It felt as if your safe zone was right here. You slowly open the door, squeeze through, and close it, hoping that no birds managed to squeeze through. You sighed softly before walking down the hall toward the back of the hallway, toward a large door leading to the larger bird habitat. You entered your pin into the door lock, mumbling the numbers, “5 - 3 - 1 - 7 - 4”, listened to the blessing click of the door, and slowly opened the door. The larger bird habitat had one male Barred Owl, an Aplomado Falcon, and a Bald Eagle perched high in the tree structure, sitting peacefully. Each of the three birds seemed entirely calm about each other being in their habitat, which amazed you. You could hear the indistinct chatter of vets and birdcage caretakers, yelling and talking about something. You walked closer to the side room, knocked, then walked in.

“It looks as if she was hit by a windmill,” The main veterinarian concluded. The vet techs all seemed to gasp. “She injured her wing and took a quick-hitting to the head. Luckily it looks as if the windmill wasn’t moving, so it must’ve been a coordination miscalculation,” You walked closer, getting a sight of the beautiful Albino Barn Owl. You had read about Albino Barn Owls before, but you had never seen one up close. An all-white, black-eyed Owl looked directly at you. “It looks as if she won’t require surgery though, it appears to be just a few muscle tears in the structure of her wing. Lucky Girl. I suppose she’ll need close monitoring.” You walked up to the Vet table and smiled. The veterinarian looked at you. You had remembered meeting him on your initial visit last week during your guide through the building.

“Good Morning, doctor,” You greeted with a warm, calm smile.

“Ah, the new girl. I’m glad to see you didn’t back down on your first day.” The veterinarian replied with a chuckle.

“I wouldn’t miss this opportunity for the world, sir.” You told him. You then turned your attention to the beautiful bird next to you. “Who is this beauty?” You asked, keeping your tone soft.

“We haven’t named her yet, but she’ll be staying with us for a while as her wing and head heal,” The vet informed as he gently stroked the bird. “She’s definitely calm about all this, though. She’s a good girl, huh?” You chuckled as you held two fingers out. The owl rubbed her head on your fingers, scratching her head. She was so calm and happy. “We have a problem, though. We can’t introduce her into our large bird exhibit until she’s better, and for an owl her size, we don’t have a cage ready for her.” The veterinarian rubbed his head and sighed, thinking of solutions. An idea instantly popped into your head, but before you could really think about the idea, the words left your mouth.

“What if I take care of her at home?” You suggested. My god, you hadn’t even been there a full hour and you’re already volunteering to take a bird home. Good going. The doctor smiled and looked at you.

“You're willing to take care of her until she’s better?” The veterinarian asked. You nodded, questioning why you were still agreeing. You had never taken care of a bird, much less a Barn Owl before. Your apartment didn’t allow pets either, but as long as she was quiet, it would be ok… right? “That’ll work great! You’ll have to give her medication for her head and wing, though. Do you know how?” You nodded again. That, you did know how to do. Thank god for the Masters in Exotic Veterinary practices. “Great. We’ll clean her up and you can take her home after work today. Will that work?” You continued nodding, still questioning why you were doing this. Yes, the master's degree in the study of birds was going to help, but they didn’t specifically teach you how to take care of OWLS! What did a Barn Owl eat, are they entirely nocturnal or sleep half of the night, do they enjoy the sunlight or not, how do they sleep? Hundreds of questions ran through your mind as you stroked the owl's head. “I suppose that means you get to name her! Think of a name for her while she stays with you.” The veterinarian told you. You held a thumbs up and nodded.

How could you suggest something so absurd!?! You had never taken care of a bird before, especially a large one that eats RODENTS! You should’ve thought this through, yet you simply just jumped at the opportunity. Good lord, you just sold your soul to the bird. She was the only thing you worked on throughout the day. Since it was your first day, it was mostly just cleaning up after the birds and admiring the birds, talking about each of the birds' histories, and learning their names. “Caleb, Colton, Connor, Cooper, Chase, Carlos, Chloe, Clara, Cellia, Cora, Caroline, Coraline.” Each bird had its own name and backstory. You knew you would never be able to remember each one.

Of the hundreds of birds in the facility, only one bird remained in your mind. The one you would be taking home with you later on. You’ve been trying to come up with a name for her the whole day, going around from, “Chelsea,” to, “Charli,” even to, “Cameron,”. But none of them fit the owl's calm personality and sweet looking face. You had periodically checked in on the bird throughout the day. The owl had slept for most of the day, but the hit in the head must’ve affected her somehow, because she was awake for the second half of the day, looking around at the smaller birds in the smaller vet cages and the birds outside the windows flying around in their habitats. She wasn’t verbal, making very little noise and simply showing no real interest whenever the doctor touched her wing. Her attention span had been affected by the hit in the head as well because she wasn’t interested in eating and didn’t pay much attention to the doctor when he tested her cognitive abilities to see how injured she really was. The doctor concluded that she had a medium-grade concussion and just needed to be somewhere calm where she can rest and properly get the attention she needed. Well, thank god you were there to just swoop at the opportunity, right?

Finally, the time came. You finally got to take her home. The doctor had set up a temporary transport cage for the Barn Owl to go home in, making it comfortable for her with blankets and a small rat if she felt like eating on the way to your apartment. You were extremely excited, yet nervous at the same time. You definitely needed to do your homework when you got home.

“Well, she’s ready to go,” The veterinarian informed you. You smiled and picked up her cage. The cage was slightly heavy, but you weren’t struggling. “Let me know how she does tomorrow morning. To make things easier for her, I suggest I just visit tomorrow after work to check up on her. Do you mind if I put my phone number in your phone?” You chuckled and pulled your phone out of your pocket. Handing it to the doctor, you began questioning if he was really trying to help the bird, or purposefully trying to get his phone number in your phone. Your last relationship didn’t really go how you wanted it to, and you weren’t entirely sure if you were ready to get back in the game. “There. Text me if you have any questions, ok?” You nod and read the name that he put on your phone. Doctor Carson. You sighed.

“I’ll make sure to update you tonight before I go to bed,” You reassured him. You gripped the cage tight, said your goodbyes for the night, then carried the Barn Owl out to your car. You set the cage down, unlocked your car, and opened the door. “Please don’t ruin my car seat. I just got this car,” You mumbled under your breath. You set the cage on the seat and pulled the seatbelt around the cage, buckling the cage securely, and getting into the driver's seat. 

The car ride was smooth, but you still checked on the bird every time you came across a red light. The bird just stared out the window, watching the cars zoom by. Once you pulled up to the apartment, you carried the birdcage into your apartment, hoping that no one saw you carrying a large animal cage into your apartment. Once inside, you set the cage on the ground and opened the cage door, praying that the bird wouldn’t destroy anything. You pulled out your phone, calling your friend, Charity, keeping a close eye on the birdcage as you put your things away.

“Hello?” Charity greeted you.

“Can you pick something up at the store for me?” You asked.

“Um, sure? What is it?” Charity replied.

“Heh, um… 6 live medium-sized mice and a rat? A large birdcage and a large water bowl? A heck lot of newspapers? A toy a Barn Owl might like?” You chuckled nervously, praying that Charity wouldn’t ask questions. There was no reply for 2 minutes before Charity sighed. “Please and thank you?”

“Yeah, sure. Give me an hour or so.” Charity replied before hanging up. You could only sigh and sit on your leather couch, staring at the birdcage. The Barn Owl didn’t come out for a while, which you understood. New environment, perhaps she was taking a moment to process?

1 Hour and 30 Minutes Later, the knock on the door awoke you. How long have you been asleep??? You stumbled to your feet and walked to the door, opening it and smiling. Charity had the look of, “You better pay me back for this,” as she held a small cage with 6 mice, a rat in a small cage, three bags of things from PetSmart, and two bags from PetCo. You sighed with relief as you let her into the house. You walked over to the birdcage on the ground and looked into it, surprised when you couldn’t see the Barn Owl in the cage. Time to engage in worried Bird Mother mode. You looked around the small living room, relaxing when you saw the Barn Owl perched on the wood railing, cleaning her feathers.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Charity started. You chuckled nervously and took the things from your friend. “You volunteered to take care of an injured Albino Barn Owl? Are you an idiot?”

“Very much so.” You agreed, nodding and stroking the bird's feathers. 

“Good lord, Cassidy,” Charity said with a sigh, “I’m friends with the biggest idiot in the world”. You smiled, knowing that it was going to be a very long night.

Charity stayed the night to help assist you with the bird. Thankfully, the Barn Owl was very quiet and not as active as other owls would have been. The Barn Owl ate 3 mice and the rat, staying perched on the wood railing, sleeping half the night. Around 1 in the morning, the Barn Owl began getting more energy, jumping around the apartment rooms and screeching a few times to get your attention. It was definitely one of the longest nights you’ve ever lived through, pulling the all-nighters hoping the owl wouldn’t tear up your leather couch or chew on the wood railing. All while trying to think of a name for your new feathered friend. At 5:30 in the morning, the doctor checked in.

“I have good and bad news for you, Cassidy,” The doctor informed you. “The bad news is that we can’t get a new cage large enough for the Barn Owl until after the Holidays. The good news is that you get the opportunity to take care of the Barn Owl for a little while longer! How would you like to take care of the owl for the holidays?” You looked toward the owl, who was back perched on the wood railing, turning her head 180 degrees to look at you. You smiled slightly.

“I’d love to.” You replied.

“Great! Also, I have a name suggestion for you,” The doctor paused for a dramatic effect before saying, “Callie.” You smiled. It was perfect. 

“Thank you, doctor. I’ll consider it.” You replied before hanging up. You stared at the white owl in front of you. Callie… greek for, “Most Beautiful”. You chuckled softly as you nodded.

It suited her. 

You sighed softly and looked at your wallet on the counter. “I’m gonna need more rats…”