Owls and Foster Care

It's raining tonight and I can hear an owl hooting. I've heard it several times this summer and wonder if it's the same owl I saw on my walk a couple of weeks ago. Two feet tall and dusty gray in color, it looked regal sitting on the branch of a fir tree. I've seen an owl around here from time to time, but it's rare. The hoot is strangely comforting or reassuring - as though its mythical wisdom will somehow take care of me.

We looked at another foster care facility today and it was a perfect place for Leola. It's a beautiful house with 4 other residents run by a nice Romanian family with three daughters. AND it's only about a 15 minute drive from our house. However, Jon and I have mixed feelings about releasing her from our care. Jon particularly, is having trouble letting her go. Yes, she is difficult to care for, but I don't think she will necessarily be happier in foster care than she is now. She will still want to "go home", wonder where her car is, talk about her boathouse on the Columbia River and say she needs to go see her mother. She will just be saying those things to strangers. But then I have to remember than Jon and I are like strangers to her sometimes, too. Does it really matter if she's with us? I don't know. Maybe the owl will tell me.