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If I Were a Bird (Free verse) by TLRufener
I would love to be a bird.
They're so free.
I mean, a bird can just fly away whenever they want to;
Just open up their wings and fly away.
If they run into a problem,
Big or small,
They can just fly away.
I wish I were a bird.
I could travel the world.
See everything I've only ever dreamed of seeing:
I could go to London and see the queen;
I could go to Ireland and dance with the leprechauns;
I could go to Rome and watch chariot races in the coliseum;
I could go to Egypt and see the pyramids;
I could go anywhere in the world.
I would love to be a bird.
But what kind of bird?
If I were a bird,
I would want to be a macaw;
Or a parrot;
Or a cock-a-too, perhaps.
I would want to be a colorful bird.
Something so beautiful,
That everyone would envy it.
With all those colors:
Reds, the blues, the yellows, pinks, and greens;
I'd want to be a rainbow bird.
So beautiful,
That I could brighten even the darkest night.
If I were a bird,
I would be the one every little child dreamed of catching,
To keep in a cage by their bed;
So they wouldn't be so afraid of the dark.
They would try, and try, and try to catch me,
But they could never do it.
No matter how much they wanted to,
They know it would be a shame to hold such a beauty inside a cage.
A cage:
Dark and dreary;
Cold and lonely;
I wouldn't want to be in a cage.
I couldn't fly away if I were in a cage.
I couldn't see the world.
No queen;
No leprechauns;
No chariot races;
No pyramids;
If I were a bird,
And if some little child caught me,
And put me in a cage,
I wouldn't want to be a bird.
Maybe being a bird isn't what I want.
Maybe having so much freedom would be bad.
I guess there are reasons to think ahead,
How a decision will affect me;
My life;
My family;
My friends.
If I were a bird,
I wouldn't want to be a bird.
I would want to be me.
I would want to celebrate birthdays and holidays,
And take vacations with my family.
I would want to laugh and tell stories with all of my friends.
I guess after all I really don't want to be that bird.
I want to be me;
Happy, friendly, ambitious;
Me;
Exactly the way I am.
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