caged bird: a meditation on music

Written By Aujané Rene

i kno-o-o-w why the caged bird sings 

after years of heart pounding

stomach churning

anxiety inducing

sleepless nights of betrayal and violence 

and destructive hands,

controlling,

forcing their silence

they searched within to remember how the sky felt when you joyfully soar with kin

  

i know why the caged bird sings

their song is a psalm of the strength it took

to relinquish the heavy weight, 

the brick,

laid upon their wings.

listen to them willing

into existence 

the desire to escape their cage

and sing the most beautiful songs God has ever allowed to be heard

i know why the caged bird sings 

at a tender age,  i’d gather and sit at their cage and listen to their beautiful song 

they shared with me:

song has allowed the caged bird to be free. 

i can’t lie, that’s stuck with me. 

 that’s why i sing

in the same note, key, and melody. 

Aujané Rene

Aujané Rene is an afro latina boricua writer and multidisciplinary artist from Moreno Valley, CA, currently based in South Central, Los Angeles. She touches on topics such as mental health, generational trauma and blessings, recovery from abuse, community, reclamation of power on an individual to as deep as a systemic level. A mental health advocate specializing in suicide prevention and education, and a songwriter who frequents open mics and performs spoken word poetry. She has a love for hip-hop, jazz, and neo-soul. Her debut poetry book, “RAW VULNERABILITY” is in the works. She can be found performing at the Radical Hood Library.

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