It was a lazy summer evening. The sun was setting as the boat entered the slough. A small girl named Donna sat on the floor of the boat along with her family. It seemed as though they had been traveling for an eternity. She was tired of looking at the trees.

"You can hardly see much now that the sun has gone anyway, ' she thought as she closed her eyes.

She sat on the floor listening to the wind and the humming of the engine. It was so relaxing she fell asleep. Suddenly the boat came to a stop. When she opened her eyes her father, Charlie, had the motor propped up on the boat.

"Whats wrong?" she asked her mother.

"I don't know. Maybe it's the prop."

Donna pulled herself up to a kneeling position and looked around. It was dark now. The moon was bright as it looked down upon them, but somehow it seemed too dark for Donna. It was also too quiet without the humming of the boat engine.

The only sound was her father working on the engine as they began to drift.

"We're never going to get home," she thought as she looked into her mother's worried face.

This trip had to be the most disappointing trip she had ever taken.

She was tired and she hadn't seen anything but trees. Now they were stuck in the slough.

Suddenly, her father was nudging her. Her mother was waking her brother and sister.

"Look up in the trees," her father said.

She looked up to where her father was pointing. There sat the largest owl she had ever seen. Its large eyes seemed to be looking directly at Donna.

"Wow! Look it's an owl," her sister whispered.

"Where, where?"

"Over there," pointed Alice.

With that, the owl lifted its gigantic wings and flew over the boat into the night sky.

Everyone watched excitedly. Then Charlie finished working on the engine.

As they made their way home Donna searched the sky trying to catch one last glimpse of the owl. Unfortunately it was nowhere to be found.

Although the owl disappeared into the night it was still on Donna's mind. This was the first time she had ever seen an owl. It was so big and graceful, it made the night seem magical.

"It was a good trip after all," she said quietly as she leaned back and closed her eyes.

By: Donna Hunter