“Never fear the shadows.  They simply mean there is a light shining somewhere nearby.”
-Irish Proverb

But what if we do fear the shadows… and such.

The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, by  T.S. Eliot, is one of my all time favorite poems.

It presents a stream of consciousness concerning some of the hard parts of life, like weariness, regret, and the awareness of our mortality.

It has become one of the most “recognized voices in modern literature”1

I hadn’t thought about this piece in quite some time.  But something about the photograph I shot today, reminded me directly of it.  Perhaps it was the long shadows, cast by such small and insignificant objects.  And in moments they will change and take on new form.  But, for a very brief period, they look like this.  And then, they are gone.

So many great passages in this one work… by Mr. Elliot.  Thanks to J. Alfred.

“For I have known them all already, known them all:
Have known the evenings, mornings, afternoons,
I have measured out my life with coffee spoons;”

…….

“Shall I say, I have gone at dusk through narrow streets
And watched the smoke that rises from the pipes
Of lonely men in shirt-sleeves, leaning out of windows?…”
…….

“I have seen the moment of my greatness flicker,
And I have seen the eternal Footman hold my coat, and snicker,
And in short, I was afraid.”

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1. (Cambridge History of American Literature, 2003).