In the backyard, I saw the shadow of a man, but I didn’t see the man. I walked toward it and the shadow backed away. The shadowman was taller than I was. It mocked me. When I waved my arms, he waved his. I ran and it followed. When I stopped, it stopped. And all the while it was silent. It couldn’t sing, but I could. I sang at the top of my lungs. The birds flew away in a cloud. The neighbors pounded on their windows. Finally, the shadowman turned and slithered into his hole.