The sunlight filtered
through feathers splayed
hits different when
the wing is stayed

i bought a bird in a cage
with the intention to set it free
i hung the cage on the tree
and opened the door wide

the bird looked at me
and did not move
i sat there, it sat there
we sat there

for hours

the wind came in and out
bugs went in and out
the cage swung
the bird waited

it did not move

i coaxed it out
with promises of berries and leaves

it left the cage
and sat on the floor
still
still it did not move
it sat on the floor

and waited
i waited
it waited
we waited

the crows gathered
circling the little bird
waiting for me to leave
so they could seize the opportunity

but i waited
it waited
they waited
we waited

the bird hopped
it hid in bushes
it climbed on a branch
it looked at me
still
still it did not fly

it began to get dark
the crows got closer
it was time for dinner
for me
for it
for them

the bird looked at me
coaxed me with fear and love
to let it back in the cage

i let it go back
i closed the door

it was safe
it was still
it was home

he had never learnt how to fly

as the little bird tries to fly,
it explored the very sky,
with her wings waving so high,
with the joy she cry

as the little bird tries to sing,
she sang so loud hoping one could hear a thing,
she waved again her little wing,
little did they know she was yelling

as the little bird tries to speak,
no one wants to hear for she's so meek
everyone thought it was just a trick
but they can't see the tears on her cheek

as the little bird tries to escape
she tries to fit in any shape
with her wings she casually drape,
her little body she gently scrape

as the little bird tries to cry
she began to look at the sky
is she here to live or to die
no one really knows why

my dear pretty starling
you'll hold my fragile attention
for no more than perhaps a season

but i'll still sit under your acacia branch
collecting iridescent feathers
as i listen to you beckon away the sun

and my dear pretty starling
soon you'll migrate to warmer evergreen
so i wish your wispy heart farewell

for mine has rotted off like bad fruit
but i'll still tuck away the seeds
for your curious beak to plant elsewhere.

they look at you with cold eyes
hard-set mouth and eyebrows rise
venom drips from their tongue
very coarse for one so young

so much anger within their soul
the glowing red embers of burning coal
they won't show weakness they won't show pain
they won't stop till their enemy's slain

that is what they show the world
fists clenched and eyebrows furled
they hide behind a tough guy charade
so no one can see them afraid

but ones you see past the mask
you'll be shocked and left to ask
why they are so nice and kind
but keep it all close, confined

An old man smiles and points the arrow
"you don't know they're just a sparrow."

Orchids,
bird wings,
moonlight,
deep sleep,
and your small hands

So long there are a man and a woman
never give up our canary bird can fly  
rosy or not the nest in every morn nets a sunrise!

I can fly with birds of sorrow,
I can fly with twisted wings.
I can fly like there’s no tomorrow,
I can sing like many springs.

People are but lonely birds,
Calling, calling, to be heard,
By other birds, by anyone,
Yet each bird keeps flying on.

Not ever pausing, to stop and hear
A lonely voice, calling dear,
The voices are lost, the voices are found
In the sound of the song, the song of the sound.

But I can fly on lonely waters
And stop to sing with lonely souls,
I can linger on the frontier,
And stop to sing, all alone.

I can soar above the clouds
Watching for someone worth singing with
Watching for someone in the crowds
A singer of songs, a legend, a myth.

But the sky is still grey, so bleak and dark,
Of blackness and unwanted things,
So I fly, as lonely as a lark,
Singing alone, on whispered wings.