“A beautiful creature like her should be left free. She should run wild, go where ever her mind takes her. Its wrong to confine her like this.”
“But father, it says here that she was born in captivity. She does not know the great outdoors that you speak of. This zoo is the only world that she knows.”
“Two wrongs do not make a right. Its wrong that her parents were bred in captivity. Its wrong that she lives in captivity.”
“She’s part of a conservation program. They are working to improve the population of snow leopards.”
“Well, then she should be in a reserve. Not a zoo.”
I watched the firm set of father’s jaw line. That expression meant that his mind was firmly and immovably made up. It was the same expression that he had when he told me that women in our family do not wear revealing clothes, do not stay out late, and most certainly they do not go to big cities and live alone.
A sudden laugh bubbled up my throat. “Father, do you think that she looks at us and wonders why we are standing behind a barbed fence.”
In response to The Sunday Photo Fiction challenge of 14th January 2018 hosted by Al Forbes
Leaking Ink 
Well written, and good try at raising a laugh but, like the father, I cannot see any humour in caged animals.
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Not well written since it didn’t convey the irony. The father can understand that animals should not be caged and yet he does not realise that he is doing almost the same to his daughter. In a sense, she is just as much in a cage.
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Lovely in every way. ❤️
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Well written Reena. If there are to be zoos I believe this should be their purpose, helping in conservation and breeding and protection endangered species until they can be returned to their natural wilderness. And not for our amusement.
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Very true. But I would still prefer wildlife reserves.
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It is sad that her father does not see how she also feels that she is being caged. A great use of prompt picture, to relate how it is for ‘two’ differing individuals
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Thank you. It is often the case that we are so much more objective and reasonable when it comes to another’s behaviour.
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I like the way your tale took several different directions. I’m certain I’ll remember your last few words if I visit a zoo! Excellent.
Click to read my SunPhoFic
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I got the irony — the father keeps his daughter and wife tightly under control, while arguing for an animal raised in captivity to be set free (where it would surely perish, unlike his daughter). You do a good job of showing both sides of this difficult argument, where people who agree on the end goal (to save the species) may disagree on the best ways to pursue it.
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There are so many shades of grey in life, and so many perspectives. I often like to explore those perspectives, irrespective of whether I agree with them or not.
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I agree; exploring other perspectives helps me understand my own better, and understand other people better as well.
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Yes, we are caged, too. Our prisons are just made of different stuff.
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I’m not sure her father would have got the irony!
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I am quite sure he would have not 🙂 Thank you for reading.
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