Picture: Hugh Mdlalose
While we walk on this earth, doing our best to tell our stories — right besides us, our shadows tell their own stories. Sometimes it’s a different tale but often more truthful than that which we could tell ourselves.
But we try nonetheless, though in world of improvisation we are already attempting the impossible. While it is a known fact that it is impossible, simultaneously, that is our main reason for doing it. The act of improvising, is in itself a meditation towards accepting both the impossibility and imperfection as a result of improvisation.
Thus, as we imagine the shadow to be a reflection of ourselves that depends on us to exist — the reverse could also be true. We are in a constant improvisation with light, time and time again the shadow displays this infinite dialoging.
Nduduzo Makhathini 20102020