Circling the Cheetah Cage

Since Sam hadn’t been offended when I asked him about being grounded, I pushed my luck a little. “What’s up with Suzanne?”

Without hesitation he asked me, “Have you been to the zoo lately?  The animals live in enclosures with trees, rocks, and streams. It gives them the illusion of living free in the wild.  If they were born in the zoo, they may not even know they’re confined.  My siblings have jobs, loves, nice houses, expensive cars.  These things make them think they’re free of addiction, either their addiction, or a loved one’s addiction, or their addiction to an addicted loved one. Because they grew up surrounded by addictions, they don’t even know they’re confined. 

“Suzanne is starting to realize she’s been penned up by my family’s many, many addictions.  She’s stepped outside the enclosure, but she’s not really free yet.”

“Why not?” I asked, thinking I was missing something.

“Being outside the enclosure isn’t really being free. Picture a cheetah standing next to an open cage on a vast plain.   If the cheetah does nothing but pace around the cage, he’s not really free, in fact, he’s not really being a cheetah.  When he takes off running, when he explores the plain, when he puts miles between himself and the cage, he’s free, he’s a genuine cheetah.  Suzanne won’t be free until she stops circling the cage. She’s gotta go on vacation, have a baby, take that job in Columbus, and stop letting our family drama keep her from living her life.”

After he left, I thought about what he’d said.  Clearly, addiction wasn’t the only cage.  Fear, guilt, anger, our pasts, misinformation, ignorance confined many of us.  I resolved to identify my ‘cages’ and not to be limited by any of them.

Today I will explore the world, I won’t circle the cage.

Life on Life’s Terms II © 2015 by Ken Montrose

(Just a reminder: LOLT II is a work of fiction.  Any resemblance to anyone you might know is purely coincidental.)