Liberty is a concept that changes according to who perceives it. It could represent how a government chooses to govern a nation, the rights that a person is given while living in a country, or liberty could be something that you fight for. In those cases, liberty is not always universal. Still today, many governments do not allow freedom to their people and their people are too afraid to fight for their liberty. But no matter who you are, or where you live, there is always an aspect of liberty that never changes: the fact that liberty is born in trust.



Liberty can be illustrated by an exotic bird in a cage. The bird does not belong entrapped behind bars and it senses this; therefore the bird does not sing, no matter how much it is loved. The bird sulks in its cage, longingly looking out between the bars. Perhaps it even remembers its life before it was put behind bars. Once the bird is given a little liberty, such as an open cage and being able to fly about, its mood brightens and the bird will begin to sing again. But it will always return to its cage at the end of the day where it knows it is safe and loved. Now, the bird and its owner can be thought of as people, the cage representing the repression of liberty. In relationships, whether between parent and child, a significant other or simply friends, it is important to give the other liberty to do as they will. It is important to trust in order for liberty to thrive.


If trust does not exist between people, how can they live in liberty? For example, in a couple that does not trust each other, the people in the couple would not allow the other to interact with other men or women, for fear of the other being unfaithful. This would eventually lead to an unhealthy relationship, centered on jealousy and distrust. This is not what liberty is. If the couple trusted each other, however, they would have the freedom of talking to other men and women without concerning the other about being unfaithful, allowing themselves to live in a healthy relationship and in liberty. The same pattern can be seen with a government and its people. The government of a nation lays down laws to guide the people but should still offer them liberty, trusting the nation’s people to not abuse their liberty and to make the right decisions. To achieve liberty with trust, it is important to find the balance between giving someone rules to guide them and containing them within those same rules out of distrust. A tyrannical government instills laws to control the nation’s people so that they will not make a “wrong” decision and take the government’s power away. The people of that nation do not have any real liberty.


Just as it is important to be able to trust others, it is equally important to trust yourself so that true liberty can come to be. Insecurity is a form of repression of liberty against yourself. How can someone exist in liberty if they do not trust themselves? By not believing in your capability of making the right decisions, learning from your mistakes, or simply by not being confident in who you are, your chances of happiness and success are hindered, thwarting your sense of personal liberty. It is by feeling confident in your capabilities and what makes you who you are that you will allow yourself to live in liberty. Back to our bird in the cage, if the bird was given the freedom to step out of the cage, but did not trust in itself enough to step out of the cage, the bird would not be free. It would still be trapped in the cage, even though it had the opportunity to be free. It is the same with people. You could have every opportunity to succeed and be happy, but if you did not trust yourself, you would not be allowing yourself true liberty.


If you trust others to respect you and make the right decisions, then they will be living in liberty, as well as you. If you are confident in yourself and trust that you will make the right decisions and learn from your mistakes, you will be allowing yourself to live in liberty. No matter who you are or what nation you live in, it simply takes trust in relationships and trust in yourself to be able to live in true liberty. To me, liberty means trust.