The Bird Will Fly
Paper Poetry Prompt #4

One fine morning, a hint of something different was in the air The caged bird felt life stir once again in wings forgotten She looked up, finding renewed strength in brittle bones She pecked at the cage and it shattered into crystalline light Holding her breath, the caged bird wondered at the spectacle Gathering up her courage like a skirt made of diamonds she flew, haltingly at first, incredulous of her new freedom, and then full throttle, breath powering the glide and soar of wings, released at last. The caged bird was caged no more.
Flying north, north-east, she came to a fork where she met a crow. Settling down, her courage seemed to waver once more. What if? She thought, What if I’m not up to the task? She asked the crow. The crow squawked at her, wise in its non-answer. The crow seemed to say: All answers lie within. All you must do is look. And she looked. And she made up her mind. She decided the fork in the road that she would take. No, it wasn’t the road most would take. But it was hers, and hers alone. And thus, trilling a new lilting song, she bid adieu to the crow, and embraced her path.
Paroma Sen 2020






