Cages and Doors
A few years ago I looked at my jewelry, and saw bird designs. My figurines on the shelves: bird shapes. And the handful of antique bird cages scattered around my house? Enough said. A bird’s grace in flight, its ability to see all things, its freedom of movement…these images have always called to me. Perhaps everyone should have an animal symbol; sometimes we choose the animal but often it chooses us.
There have been years where I looked at my life as if through wooden bars, my emotional pain blinding me to the most liberating part of my cage — the exit. All cages have these portals but often they are invisible to us.
Circumstances can feel like cages and many times you can’t change them. Abusive childhoods, deaths of loved ones, betrayal from a partner, difficult relationships – all can break your wings and your heart. But if your situation is a cage, then perspective is the cage door. The lens through which you choose to view your circumstance is, in a sense, your way out.
Noted mindfulness teacher Nova Knutson once wrote that “the cage is not locked.” Because we do have choices…We get to choose if something will ruin or strengthen us. We get to choose to forgive ourselves and others. We can choose to take care of our minds and bodies. We can choose to be compassionate with ourselves. We can choose to seek support. We can choose to make changes in our life or stay stuck. Each choice is a door that opens our cage and sets us free.
— by Suzanne Hughes, MFT
