by William D. Tucker
Whenever you see shadows, project yourself into them.
You may make of yourself a menace, if that pleases you, or you may make of yourself a benign observer, and/or you may simply regard your time in shadows as a vacation. I'll leave it to you.
You may find that shadows encourage transformation, metamorphosis.
You may find that shadows are more of the same. Maybe you already spent most of your time in the dark.
It is also possible that you do not like being in shadows at all.
You may conclude the game of shadow projection at any time and for any reason without incurring any wrath, penalty, punishment, or scorn whatsoever. It's just a game.
Maybe the shadows change you, show you new powers, give you new purpose(s), or even porpoise(s).
Maybe shadows are just, y'know, kinda boring. Shadows don't have screens. They are not generally understood to be capable of directly inducing orgasm. Nor have shadows been known to offer unlockable achievement messages. It could well be argued that shadows are kinda lame. Stupid, even.
Hey, I'm not trying to be mean to shadows or anything. But there's a definite subset that holds to what could be broadly construed as 'Shadows Suck Ideology.' So, y'know, it's got to be considered as in-the-mix.
However you choose to do it, go ahead and project yourself into shadows if only for a little while. Or you may do it for a lotta while. Write down your experiences in as much detail as you want, and then set aside this account which shall be called your Shadow Projection Chronicle. Maybe tend to some laundry or clean your bathroom or take a fat shit or go for a walk or get back to work or shirk your obligations or try to bully your defense advisors to go along with your dreams of a pre-emptive nuclear strike or pet your dog or marvel at your cat's quirky way of jumping into a cardboard box and just settling there for forty-five minutes or order the decapitations of your political rivals or do some yoga or catch up on your Watch Later playlist of insipid BookTube content or make those cuts to the education budget you've been daydreaming about or pick up some scratchoffs on your way back to the house or browbeat yourself into reading the first chapter of War and Peace or finally check out that REDACTED video on the Dark Web your old college buddy texted you about or order a pizza or trim your nails or invest in robotic warfare futures or just don't step on that spider for once 'cause it ain't bothering you and it's au naturale pest control and maybe you'll take up breeding spiders right here in your apartment and then go around seeding them all throughout the building 'cause there's no one to stop you and you mostly wake up not giving a fuck these days so why not do something with that feeling for once in your life or you could step on the spider and be done with it or you could unplug this weekend and let email keep 'til Monday morning but you never have the willpower for that or you could spend some time doing Sudoku. Whatever you end up doing, you must stay away from your Shadow Projection Chronicle and be wholly absorbed in some other activity and/or endeavor. Now, it's possible you entirely lose track of time. You may not get back to your Shadow Projection Chronicle for an entire day. Or more! But when you do pick it up again, read it carefully.
Ask yourself, "Do I wish to do more Shadow Projection? Or have I experienced more than enough of Shadow Projection? Do I have any sure way of knowing for sure? Can I trust my own opinion or do I need to submit to the opinion of another? Would anything be gained or lost if I combined my opinion with another's opinion? Do I need to cite sources to render my own opinion more credible? What if I started screaming uncontrollably? Would I be expressing frustration or joy? Are my feelings real? Are feelings real? If I enjoyed Shadow Projection overmuch am I at risk for uncontrolled Shadow Projection at inopportune times? Will I not be able to help myself from compulsive Shadow Projecting? Is there no escape? Did I desire escape in the First, Middle, or Last Place? If I hated Shadow Projection then why not make war upon Shadow Projectors and all their works? Am I so insubstantial that I would merely accept continued existence upon the same planet where My Enemy also dwells? Could I live with such dishonor? And what of True Love? Where does that belong in a world of Eternal Conflict? Am I still upset about all those people hoarding toilet paper? Or was I always more of a corncob type of person anyways? Do I only feel clean if it gets a little bloody? Did I think on corncobs during my time in shadows or was I free of such workaday desires? Am I free? Is freedom free? Can I phone a friend?"
Once you have interrogated yourself unto exhaustion, close your eyes, and sit quietly in willful darkness for as long you're able. Try not to think. Make no noises of your own if you can help it. Stay like this for as long as is comfortable . . . then supersede all limits! You may very well find yourself Shadow Blasting once you've superseded all limits. If so, you are now playing with Tremendous and Terrifying Power. Nothing will be likely to stop you except for a Rival Shadow Blaster. Be on your guard as you stride boldly into a New Reality.
But if you do not supersede . . . well, y'know, maybe it's high time you got back to your grind. Maybe that's all you're good for, after all.
In some ways, y'know, failing to supersede might actually be better. Certainly, it's more intriguing.
You'll constantly be wondering, "What would my life have been like if I had managed to supersede?"
It'll end up being a kind of . . . X-Path, one that's forever out of reach . . . that never stops tantalizing you . . .
