Do You Know Where the Shadows Go?

            by Ian Gill

 

Jackson was a normal boy who liked doing normal things.

            He went to school during the week, and on weekends he read his favorite books.

            He lived with his family, his grandpa Willem, and his brother and sister Barnett and Lee (who were twins) in New York. 

            Jackson was also a very shy boy.  He didn’t feel comfortable around the other kids, who called him names.

            So, Jackson spent his time playing with his shadow, his very best friend in the whole world.

 

            When Jackson hopped off the school bus, his shadow was always there.

            They ate food together.

            They rode bicycles together.

            They drew pictures together.

            When nighttime came, Jackson said goodbye to his shadow, who could only come out when there was light. 

            And Shadow was happy.

            One day, however, things were different.

            Jackson hopped off the school bus with a new friend!  His name was Mark.

            “It’s ok,” thought Shadow to himself.  “Jackson is still my best friend, and I am his.”  But Shadow was jealous of Mark.

            Soon, Jackson and Mark did everything that Jackson and Shadow used to do.

            They ate food together.

            They rode bicycles together.

            And they drew pictures together.

“Jackson is too busy to play with me,” thought Shadow.  “Now I have no friends.”

            And one day, Shadow ran away.

 

            At first, Jackson didn’t notice.  He was too busy playing with Mark.  But later, he felt sad that he couldn’t play with his friend Shadow.

            “I wonder where my friend has gone?” thought Jackson.  “I need to find him.”

            Jackson went to his brother Barnett, who also liked painting.

            “Big brother Barnett, where is my shadow?  I can’t find him.”

            “Little Jackson, I am busy sculpting.  Go look for him in the mailbox.”

            He could not find shadow there, so he went to his sister Lee.

            “Sister Lee, where is my shadow?  I can’t find him.”

            “Little Jackson, I do not know where your shadow is.  Have you looked outside?”

            Jackson looked, but he could not find shadow there either. 

            Frustrated, Jackson went to his room and slammed the door.  He sat on his bed and felt sad.

            But all of a sudden, there was a knock on the door.  Jackson’s grandpa came in.

            “What’s wrong, Jackson?” he asked.

            “Grandpa Willem, I can’t find my shadow.  I asked Barnett and Lee, but they won’t help me find him.  Now I’ll never find my best friend!”

 

            “Don’t worry Jackson, because I know where your shadow is.  He is in the place where shadows go when they feel lonely.  He is in a far-off place called Houston, Texas.”

            Grandpa Willem handed Jackson a small picture of where Shadow was.  It was a grey building near some trees.  There was a statue in the middle of a pool of water outside.      

Jackson didn’t know where this place was, but he hopped on his bicycle and rode off to find his missing friend.

           

            Jackson rode for days and days.  When he got tired, he would take small breaks.  On these breaks, he would sometimes eat food, and sometimes paint pictures. 

On the fifth day, he saw a boy sitting on the side of the road.  Jackson decided to stop, because the boy looked sad.

            “Hi, my name’s Jackson.  What’s wrong?”

            “My bicycle broke, and now I’ll never get to where I’m going!”

            The boy, whose name was Vincent, also wanted to go to Texas!  He needed to go visit his grandmother.  Unfortunately, his bicycle had a flat tire, and could no longer run correctly. 

            “I can’t fix your tire, but I will find somebody who can.”

            Jackson hopped back on his bike and rode away.  Eventually, he came to a thrift store.  He went inside, after properly locking up his bike.

            Jackson walked up to the counter.

            “Hi, I was wondering if you have a spare tire for a bicycle.” 

            The shopkeeper said that he had one, but Jackson realized that he didn’t have any money. 

            “Mr. Shopkeeper, I don’t have any money, but I really need the tire.  Can you trade me the tire for one of my paintings?”

            The shopkeeper agreed, and they exchanged their items.  Jackson emerged from the shop with a nice, new tire to give to his new friend Vincent.

            Jackson rode back to Vincent, and once his bicycle was fixed, they got back on the road.

            Jackson and Vincent rode for days and days.  On the seventh day, they finally reached Houston!

            After asking for directions, they eventually found the building they were looking for.  It was a grey building near some trees.  There was a statue in the middle of a pool of water outside.

            Jackson and Vincent went inside, and there was Shadow!  He was sitting in the middle of the room.  Jackson ran over to him. 

            “Shadow!  I was worried about you!  Why did you leave?”

            “I didn’t think that you wanted to be my friend anymore.  You only wanted to play with Mark.”

            “I’m sorry, Shadow.  I just got carried away.  I was so distracted that I forgot about my best friend.  Can you forgive me?”

            After Jackson and Shadow had reunited, they went over to Vincent, who was waiting outside for them.

            “Hey, do you want to come over to my house?” asked Jackson.

            “Definitely!  Just let me tell my grandmother, so she doesn’t worry.”

 

            Jackson and Shadow left the building, excited that they had found a new friend, but also happy that they had found each other.