O showed me the 'school owl' on campus the last day of school. Owls have an interesting place in folklore - the Romans thought they were harbingers of death but the Greeks thought them a good omen. They are magical, wise, mysterious. Afganis believe the owl brought flint and iron to man to make fire, Aboriginal Australians believe owls are the spirits of women and are sacred, in Bretengne (France) owl sightings mean a good harvest, the Inuit of Greenland look to owls for guidance and Indonesians think them wise and use the owls call for advise about travel. Unfortunately for owls in Zambia they are considered bad juju and are often killed on sight. We have had a barn owl nesting on our property, two black cats (also bad luck), and if the cats haven't caught them all, chameleons (another bewitched animal because of their ability to change color, move both eyes independently, and their goofy line-dancing gait). We feel pretty safe here in Lusaka but I am glad to have these creatures-in-residence as a bit of extra security --they probably do more to keep prowlers away than our silly security fence!
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