Shadow

I think I want to be a nobody
Hiding in dark shadowy corners
Slipping behind trees to avoid
Unwanted, unsolicited encounters
With people wanting a piece of me.

Even in sunlight, it is the shadows I seek
Covering my face with my hands
Wrapping my head with my arms
Shielding my soul with wishes
And timid little whispered prayers

For grass that grows taller than me
To shelter me from judgmental eyes
For blue sky that dips down to earth
To become a pale airy cocoon
Safeguarding my vulnerability.

And because I am what I wished for
Nobody will listen or even hear me
But from my dim refuge I hear them
See their kindnesses and cruelties
I take my pick from among them,

Weave their best words and wishes
Into garments fashioned in the dark from
The dazzling remnants of conversation
Overheard in my hiding place
Purloined for my own purposes.

I am not much more than a shade
After decades of seeking the shadows
And if somebody comes up to me
To insinuate their presence into mine
I will slip away from them like time.