Saturday, September 4, 2010

Rest in peace my friend...

"I have to remind myself that some birds aren't meant to be caged.
Their feathers are just too bright and when they fly away, the part of you that knows it was a sin to lock them up does rejoice, but still, the place you live in is that much more drab and empty that they're gone.
I guess I just miss my friend."


Red in the Shawshank Redemption

For a friend who was in my life for way too short a time - but who taught me much about all kinds of things.
I know she is free now, free of all pain and finally at peace.
Still very sad and I do miss her - thats selfish but human.


And yet on another level, it is true for us all I think - we all need our freedom, and clipped wings are just cruel
no bird is meant to be caged, and if we leave the door open we may find some colourful visitors come to roost with us a while, maybe even often.
They may leave behind evidence of their prescence, a soft downy comfort, or a bright tail feather as a reminder while they adventure, but whatever they leave, we are blessed to have had them with us and shared with them.

While they are here we get used to their presence, to sharing our food and water and our tales, to caring for one another when they are around. We certainly do miss them when they are away, and may even anticipate their return, expect their return, which invariably they do.

It may be that this may be their perch of choice, that they are always here, but they will always have wings.
It is part of their beauty,
part of what we liked about them to begin with when they flew into our lives from nowhere - they chose to stop a while and admire our plumage and our home too...that made us feel good.

Wings are
vital
compelling
integral to who we are.
We all may choose where we go
and noone has the right to clip them
or to close the cage door.

And surely they are at their most spectacular and glorious when they are spread and in flight... and even more so if we see them coming home :)