I grew up on a reservation, and it was the same. People would freak out if an owl showed up, because it meant that someone was going to die. One of the elders, though, told me that people were getting it wrong, and that the owl was a messenger that someone HAD died and had been carried across.
Thank you for this clarification because I have an owl that visits my yard and was torn between it being a good sign or a bad omen.
Only when it’s where you wouldn’t expect in daytime.
So if it’s perched in a tree in the yard with a nest and just chilling during the daytime, then it’s no big deal. However, if said owl swoops down and decides to sit on your front porch for no apparent reason, or fly right up to peak in through a window, then that’s the time to get worried?
Yup
Good point. I hadn’t even considered they’re supposed to be nocturnal.
Oh that's interesting, I have a relative who had an owl come stare at her at the window right after her mum's passing and she took it as a sign, so that would make sense!
Thanks for sharing!! I learned on twitter it was a bad omen in a lot of diff tribes. This picture of the owl on the tree is creepy af too with the dark eyes.
Yes. It can also mean that a person that passed is showing themselves to you. I don’t look at it as a bad omen at all.
I expect different nations had different traditions.
Totally agree
Of course. And I lived near other reservations as well, so there was some crossover and "muddying of the waters" between tribes/nations in regards to the stories. But -- as with any belief system that is not rigorously taught or practiced -- people tend to remember what's "fun." And scary is fun.
Scary IS fun!
Wow! Thank you both for sharing.
I heard about this from the show Reservation Dogs. They even pixelate the eyes anytime an owl appears on the show, because looking at the eyes was extremely bad luck.
One of the best shows in recent times.
For sure. I want to do a rewatch. I fell in love with the characters. Taika Waititi is involved in 3 of my favorite shows: Our Flag Means Death, What We Do In The Shadows, and Reservation Dogs.
I THOUGHT I saw his name on the What We Do credits...loved Reserv. Dogs, too, but we can't stream so all I saw was the first season..
This checks. An owl visited my uncle right after my mom died. We thought it was significant because she loved owls.