"What happened to your hair?"  That was the question on little three year old Abby's mind the first time she met me at her Grandpa and Grandma's home.  

​Abby had seen a few men with little to no hair but she had NEVER seen a woman with thin hair - so thin in fact, Abby could see my scalp! She was very curious and had to know more.
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"Well," I began, "a long time ago when I was not much older than you Abby, I was outside playing in my back yard in sunny Idaho on a fine summer day - a day much like today as a matter of fact!" 
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"Then I saw a shadow on the ground near me that quickly got bigger and bigger! Then, I heard a very loud screech right on top of me that was the scariest sound I ever heard!  A huge dark bird swooped down from the sky and snatched the hair right off the top of my head!"

​Abby had to know more!  
​With eyes wide in amazement, she asked, very concerned, "Did it hurt much?"

​"It was so long ago Abby, I don't remember it hurting. But I sure do remember being very surprised and scared!  I had never heard about birds stealing people's hair before! Have you?" 

​Of course, little Abby had never heard of anyone else having their hair stolen by a bird and said so.

"Not Really. What kind of bird was it?" Abby asked.

"Now THAT is the mystery! I spent a long time trying to find that out. After I was old enough to read,  I searched the big Encyclopedias in the library. We didn't have computers and Google back then so we used reference books.
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I kind of remembered it may have had a red head with no feathers on it. The bird was big and very dark. It flew away so fast, I didn't get a good look.  I wouldn't be satisfied until I found out just what kind of bird that was so I could watch out for it!
 
As I studied the pictures carefully in the library, several birds seemed to be possible suspects.

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A vulture is big and dark and has a red head with no feathers on it. Some say they are very sneaky. They fly high in the sky and can fly fast.

Do you think it could be sneaky enough to steal my hair?

​Then I learned they are very afraid of people and they live out in the country or in the deserts. They eat dead animals that other animals kill so they are good cleanup critters for the environment. You hardly ever see them in towns, like the one I lived in. So I kept searching the books looking for the hair snatcher.

There is a big red headed black bird called an Ibis. They have a long reddish skinny bill. They build their nests with grass and straw.

​Do you think an Ibis could use my  hair to build her nest?

​The problem with the Ibis; it only lives in South America or the islands of the Caribbean where it is very warm. That is a very long way so they are never seen in Idaho.

For a while I thought the wild turkey might have been the bird that stole my hair. Turkeys have a red bald head, dark feathers, they grow nice and big and they live in Idaho.

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But then I learned they are so big they can't fly far or very high or fast. AND, they gobble but they don't screech.
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Then one day, after many years of searching, I finally found a picture of the big dark feathered bird that I think probably snatched my hair.  My search was over. 
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It is called the bald eagle. It has a very big wing span, over 6 feet! It lives in Idaho, it soars high in the sky and it screeches loudly. It can fly very fast and dives at over 80 miles an hour! BUT, it doesn't have a red bald head.

But this picture convinced me I found
​ the right bird. 

Now, to keep that old bald eagle from using any more of my hair to cover his bald head,  ​I always wear a hat outdoors.  Abby, you may want to do the same thing!

P.S. Don't believe everything you hear or see! Check it out and decide for yourself!"

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. 1 John 4:1 ESV

​By Mary Lou Becker for "Sweet Abby", 2018