This morning when I stepped out of my house to go to work, I saw a bird. Not such an unusual thing given the number and variety of birds to be found in this city, you might say. I'm not an ornithologist, but it appeared to be some kind of finch - a quick Google search tells me it was a male Goldfinch. It was a tiny thing; beautiful and gracious. It looked at me curiously for a moment before boldly flitting across my path. It made me realise a few things.

This bird grew up in a cage. It was bought from a pet store and in a moment of frenzied elation; a back was turned, a cage door left open - freedom was attained! Which creature, given the same opportunity, would not take it?

What is the fate of this bird? In my mind, without a doubt, death will come to it soon. Exposure, starvation, feline ingestion - This finch is not meant for this outside environment. It will most likely never find a mate, as I have not seen a bird of its like in Wellington before outside a cage. So what drove this bird to escape?

Surely no thought was behind the decision. That is a human thing, the hesitation: the consideration of the cost of action, as if we can somehow know the future through careful consideration. We can not.

Is one day of this bird's freedom worth a lifetime of comfortable life in a cage? Resoundingly, yes! Then why am I still in my cage? Why do I fill it with objects that make it more comfortable - To what end? I am reaffirmed in my desire to escape. The plans are already laid and my course is set and I am counting down the days .