The Weight of Water

We walk through the world looking for ourselves in the surfaces we pass. A window, a polished stone, a pool of black water. We want to know if we are still there, if the shape we cast is as solid as we remember. But water is a fickle mirror. It holds the light for a moment, then ripples, and the image is gone. It does not care for our need to be recognized. It only cares for the gravity that pulls it down and the stillness that allows it to breathe. There is a strange comfort in this. To be doubled, to be seen, and yet to remain untouched by the reflection itself. We are always standing on the edge, looking at a version of ourselves that cannot speak back. If the water were to break, would we still be whole?

Prajith Cherukatt has taken this image titled Nice Reflection. It captures the city’s ghost resting on the surface of the dark. Does the water hold the light, or does the light simply pass through?