On a sunny morning like this one
every pebble on the this beach has its own shadow
every crow’s antics are cast beneath it on the ground
but out on the water, ripples eat the shadows
leaving the duck and the fisherman alone
without shadow or reflection, they achieve unity
if the water is still
we are split
into image, shadow, reflection
I always thought stillness would make me whole
but it seems I need a ruffle of breeze
or a tide
or a sourceless ripple
Composed August 25, 2025