In the book Peter Pan, one of the most memorable moments for me, is when the shadow of Peter Pan is severed from him when Nana runs into the room and growls. Peter quickly jumps out the window, but Nana has trapped his shadow by closing the window on it. Fortunately, Wendy who has befriended Peter will later sew his outline back.
I didn’t notice until I became an adult, that death is a major component of the Peter Pan story. In the first chapter of the book “Peter and Wendy,” it’s essentially stated that Peter Pan is a psychopomp— a term found in mythology, that refers to guides of souls, spirits, angels, or deities in many religions whose responsibility is to escort newly departed souls from earth to the afterlife.
But others believe that Peter’s shadow, and those of his lost boys are typically understood as a symbol of their inability to reach adulthood. Thus the Peter Pan Syndrome in relationships, is a term that can be a harsh truth for women to come to the realization that the man-child that their dating or married too refuses to get his shit together.
I guess I am one of those guys who have clung to my long-shot dream for so long that it nearly costs me the harmony and love of family, friends and financial security. So, why was it that I noticed my shadow trying to open the door to this old rusty pickup truck ? Maybe my silhouette is foreshadowing that without him, I have hitched a ride to Neverland and just how arrogant and self-absorbed I can really be if I don’t take stock of my actions and make the right attitude adjustment.
Exposure and Other Worldly Morsels 