Shadow

We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves.

~ Buddha

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I like this quote. It positions the shadow in a positive way. I am drawn to light and shadow, but shadow is a distortion, not a reflection. It doesn't show us as we are, but an exaggerated sense of what we are.

Simultaneously exaggerated and simplified. You can't see the face in a shadow. You can sometimes see features. You can sometimes see outlines, but the details are hidden.

I think we see others in the same way that we see ourselves in shadow. We see some aspects of what they are, but never the details. Or maybe a very few details, but never the entire picture.

I was going to say that we see ourselves as a reflection, but that's not quite right either. Maybe a distorted reflection - like in a funhouse mirror. Pieces exaggerated, pieces diminished. Never an exact replica of reality.

More importantly, why are they called "funhouses"?  They aren't fun at all.  They are scary - especially if there is creepy music playing and images of clowns on the walls.