“Birds born in a cage think flying is an illness.” Anonymous
What’s caging you? What have you been born into that’s limiting you? When I first discovered this quote, it hit me hard because I was born into an ideology that still affects me today. The process of being born and raised in an ideology is often referred to as domestication.
It’s important to understand that most of us are born and raised in some form of domestication. Governments, religion, education, clubs, cliques, and cults all carry belief systems their subjects are encouraged to adopt, sometimes for the good and sometimes for the bad; these systems become laws we live by. They can limit us and even cage us.
I recently took an acting class led by Christopher Tramantana, a professor at the NYU Tish School of Drama. Professor Tramantana teaches ‘clown’ among other forms of drama, but he is most interested in the ‘clown character.’ He shared why.
The clown is the ultimate creator; the unlived self. The clown has no shame, which is why he’s free to create.
His statement got me thinking about the boxes life tries to put us in and the way we willingly allow it, and even assist at times so that we can ‘fit in.’
When we begin to realize we’ve been domesticated, and on some level born in a cage, we can make adjustments to help free ourselves and begin exploring our unlived lives, begin trying new things, and gain our wings to fly.
Remember, Birds born in a cage think flying is an illness.
Bits of Wisdom Podcast #57