Caged Bird in Springtime
(James Kirkup)
What can it be,
This curious anxiety?
It is as if I wanted
To fly away from here.
But how absurd!
I have never flown in my life,
And I do not know
What flying means, though I have heard,
Of course, something about it.
Why do I peck the wires of this little cage?
It is the only nest I have ever known.
But I want to build my own,
High in the secret branches of the air.
I cannot quite remember how
It is done, but I know
That what I want to do
Cannot be done here.
I have all I need –
Seed and water, air and light.
Why then, do I weep with anguish,
And beat my head and my wings
Against those sharp wires, while the children
Smile at each other, saying: “Hark how he sings”?
Because sometimes, it's worth asking why nothing seems the way you feel and know it should be, whether or not you know any better, or know any worse.
