Losing My Shadow

Recently someone asked me, "Why did you choose Tokyo?" I hadn't thought about it before, but I answered without hesitation, like I'd known all along: "I didn't choose Tokyo, Tokyo chose me." My first trip, I was running from my myself and from uncertainty. The moment I landed, I caught a horrid cold and spent the week in a haze. I don't remember much, except that I hated the food, hated the weather, and was irritated that nobody would look me in the eye. Vowing to never return, I went home. Six months later, I finally looked at the photos I'd shot and knew I that I had to go back. So I went, and I'd always return home thinking, "that's it, I'm done, time to move on to something else." But I kept getting drawn back. Tokyo became my escape and my mirror. Here, I'm safe in the crowd, isolated without loneliness, collecting small reflections, reassurances that I'm not alone.