As the drift of a wailing sound caught my attention, I ……

Wondered…….
Is my body and soul crying again?
Looked around, oh a bird in a cage
Hanging in my neighbor’s backyard
His was not a happy note, rather umbrage.

Wondered …..
What did the bird do to deserve this?
Pretty plumage?  pleasant voice?
Diminutive frame? All of the above?
Sadly, the bird didn’t have a choice.

Wondered…..
How can we, at the apex of pyramid,
condemn another life to imprisonment,
for having done nothing to earn this fate?
Is due process just an empty slogan?

Encaged in a pen not large enough
for the bird to flex his muscles
A harsh punishment to an innocent life
Can’t escape; even without manacles!

Wondered….
How would I react to such confinement?
I am born to be free, so is the bird
We both are God’s children
Why do the lines get blurred?

Wondered…..
Does the bird think it can set itself free?
Pleading and begging anyone
walking by the cage, raising hope
only to be dashed and undone

Wondered…..
What is he saying as it chirps?
Is it what did I do to deserve this?
Or, I was borne to roam the skies,
which turn did I miss?

Wondered…..
One foggy morning, no chirps? no cage?
What happened to the bird they jailed?
Must have let him go free
Better sense may have prevailed.

No need to wonder……
The bird freed itself the only way it knew how
Realized, control he must regain
Uncaged the soul, set it free
Free to roam the skies, once again.

What an irony?
Had to die to be free!
I suppose, there is justice after all
Especially for those in a menagerie!

PS
Wondering ……
I am not prejudiced, am I?
Why did I assume, the bird is a He?
Would I’ve reacted differently
if it was a SHE??