first encounter wid 'big eyes'

'pecha' is d word for owl in oriya
even though being d latter i never called an owl tht
owls were always 'big eyes' for me after one exciting tyrst wid dem
our washroom had a huge window - i never got the purpose
y shud a washroom need a window
nevertheless it was always closed, never open
as a little girl i used to b afraid of birds - a lot
so much so tht i usd to hv nightmares of birds pecking me and a helpless me thrashing in sleep
well one fine night, i decided to open the window
i dnt remember any special reason for doing it
bt i went ahead and pulled it open
i had to squint to look in d dark
after a few seconds of me blinking madly wid my face pressed to the glass
i saw an old telephone post - unused, no wires pouring from it
i kept looking at it intently
dere ws somethng tht moved from time to time
though i afraid, i ws rooted to the place
it must have been a good 4 inches tall thng
i ws all d more interstd
i went back into my room to look for a flashlight but finding none i had to ask mom
i got it from her and just wen i ws about to resume to my place tht i found my elder brother wid a wicked grin on his face (actually tht was always on his face)
he excitedly inquired d matter, and stupid me i told him everythng
as if he was d head of a detective agency he went ahead wid me trailing him meekly
d first thng he tld me after lookng out - its too dark i cnt see nethng, hand over d light
i grumpily handed it over and both of us gaped at wat v saw
it was a barn owl, magnificient, handsome, very royale looking
as soon as d light flashd in its face it took off
and d two of us couldnt stop ourselves from cheering and smiling audibly
bt we did notice the huge thing flying - wings end to end a good 30 inches
d way it swooped and pulled over was so breathtaking
we cudnt locate it widin seconds bt v cherish d memory till now
years later one another night we (yes me n my noble brother) saw a white snowy owl flying towards us
we were on d terrace playing hopskotch......and d owl flying over our heads is still very clear in my mind
these incidents made me a queer person - my fear for birds remained namely pigeon
somethng abt it makes me quiver in fear
but certain birds as d owl, eagles, and some others are a special to me
i have been as lucky to catch a glimpse of a white eagle
sitting on d water tank of our house, its beautiful shiny eyes, glimmering spotless white wings
amazing birds
i love only dem