Susan Goldsmith Wooldridge, in her book Poemcrazy, talks about the important of becoming acquainted with our shadows. Carl Jung held to the belief that when we are about seven years old, we separate ourselves from whatever it is in us that others may not find acceptable. However, it is still there. It is our shadow, connected to us whether we acknowledge it or not. Wooldridge suggests getting to know your shadow, listening to her (or him, as the case may be) and finding out what she wants, what hurts her, what drives her ... Close your eyes and, just for a few minutes, watch her (or him) in action. Then write what you see. Here's what I wrote:
My shadow, though my size, stands in such a way that she appears tall. She is slender, unaffected by previous child bearing or aging. When she walks, she does so lightly and briskly, jumping cracks and puddles without hesitation.
She wears colorful dresses that are completely out of style, dresses that hang loosely and swish around her calves. She wears wide brimmed hats and tends to go barefoot.
Her eyes are not shuttered with the weight of four lives that she carries there. When people look into her eyes, they see laughter and poetry and an undying hope.
She absorbs the moment, untangled in past regrets and future apprehensions.
She is ageless, graceful. Light on her toes, she dances to music that often only she can hear, sometimes with others, often alone.
4 comments:
I just typed a long response, but the computer ate it, so I'll have to get back to this later. Sorry :(
My shadow is distorted at times. Sometimes smaller than she should be and other times taller than expected.
She is not hurried or worried by anything. She is carefree and sees beauty all around her.
She loves to walk through clear, clean, ice cold streams and lay for hours in the tall grass watching the clouds float by. Her feet never hurt from the coldness of the water all she feels is the tiny fish tickling her toes as they swim by.
My shadow is ageless
Never a child but never grown up
My shadow is painless
Never too tired and never worn out
My shadow's invincible
And he thinks I am too!
He drags me behind him
Like a kid at the zoo
I trip and I stumble
But what can I do
I'll run on beside him
and salvage my shoes
I would write something inspiring (if I could) but unfortunately my shadow is away today. It appears that she took my muscle strength and a good portion of my nerve conduction. The nice thing about it though, if you think about it, is that when she returns I will be SO glad to see her.
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