My Shadow, My Growing Pains

(picture by me)

My Shadow?
My Shadow.

So eager to ask questions,
But rarely towards myself.

What is my shadow?
An opposite?
A casualty?

A replica?

Is my shadow my father,
Creeping in the shadows,
Always right behind?

Is my shadow a kid in the corner,
Telling stories to himself,
As the rest of the world wars away?

Is my shadow a crime lord,
Hell bent on world domination,
By the use of pocket monsters?

Light, Dark,
Ying, Yang,
Good, Evil,
Truth, Lies,
Boundaries, Heartbreak.

Who is my shadow?
What is their face?
Where do they stand?

Maybe the shadow is just myself,
Living my content life,
As an imitation of myself.

Maybe my shadow is real,
This is not the real me,
The real me is the kid in the corner.

Still making stories,
But only for themselves.

The shadow me,
Is the one you see,
Stapled up smile,
Bags under eyes.

My shadow is the one,
Who drags me out of my shell,
The one who wants the glory.

The real me is tired,
Isolated and warm,
The one who wants the legacy.

My shadow is my past,
Always behind me,
Reminding me how I’ve fallen,
And failed.

My true self is my future,
Ever beaming,
Basking in the resolution,
Of retirement.

My present self,
My present shadow,
Is still going through growing pains.