The person who feeds his own shadow

At dinner time, a tall man with a kind face and a reserved and miserable smile walked into a fancy restaurant.

He came gracefully to the front and said aloud: "Gentlemen, I am very willing to present here a miracle, the wonders of which no one has so far been able to glimpse. In recent years, I have delved into the mind of my own shadow, trying to explore its needs and preferences. Today, I would like to tell you the whole story, to repay your kindness. Please read! My dear and sincere lifelong companion - my shadow!"

In the half-light, half-darkness, he approached the wall, his slender figure projected on the wall. The hall was silent as the guests stretched their necks to see what was going on. As if to release a pigeon, he closed his hands to announce: "Knight jumping the fence!" Only to see the knight-like shadow bounce on the wall; "rabbit eating vegetables!" At once, a rabbit-like shadow appeared gnawing on cabbage; "Goat climbing!" Sure enough, the goat-like shadow was climbing up a steep slope.

"Now I'm going to give this fleeting image an independent life and reveal a silent new world to everyone." After saying that, he walked away from the wall, but the shadow magically stretched longer and longer, straight up to the ceiling.

"Gentlemen, I have conducted tireless research to make the shadow live independently from me. If I give it a little command, it will take on all the characteristics of life, and even eat! I will give you a show right away, what do you give my shadow to eat?"

A thunderous voice replied, "Here, give it this turkey jelly."

With a roar of laughter, the tall man reached for the proffered plate and approached the wall. His shadow then retracted freely from the ceiling, almost close to his body. People could see clearly that his body did not move, but the shadow reached its slender hands to the plate, carefully copied the piece of meat, brought it to his mouth, chewed, and swallowed ......

"It's simply amazing!"

"Give it this piece of chicken breast."

"Pear! It must be wonderful to see how it eats pears."

The tall man smiled and said, "Very well! Gentlemen, let's take them one by one, now let's eat the chicken breast first. Excuse me, which one of you can hand me a napkin? Thank you!" Listening to the tall man's words, all the guests joined the entertainment with great interest.

"Give it some more pie, you're a bit dry and thin for a shadow!"

"Hey! Smartass, does your shadow drink? Give it this glass of wine, and drink it to relieve its sorrow."

The shadow ate and drank, and was at ease. Soon, the tall man turned on the light, looking cold and melancholy, his face looked extraordinarily pale.

He said solemnly: "Gentlemen, I am aware that such a subtle experiment is easy to provoke ridicule and suspicion, but it does not matter, one day, this experiment to make their own shadow independent of myself, will be recognized and rewarded. Before I leave, I would ask anyone who has doubts to come and search my clothes to be sure that I am not hiding anything. The generosity of all of you is not without food for my shadow. This is as true as my name is Camillo Fleche. I thank you very much, and I wish you all a good meal and good night!"

The guests heard the tall man say so, knowing that the show is over, they have sent him off stage, waiting for the next show, and no one cares whether the food just thrown out by the "shadow" had been eaten.

The man who just performed called himself Camilo. Fletcher, whose real name is Juan Marino. Marino, faced the three parties, each bowed, and solemnly exited the restaurant. As he walked through the garden, someone suddenly grabbed him by the arm.

"Get out of here!" The policeman roared, "Next time I see you, I'll send you and your shadow to spend the night in the police station."

Marino lowered his head and slowly walked out. Turning the corner, he straightened up a little and walked home faster.

When he got home, a little girl greeted him: "You don't come back, the little ones don't want to sleep, they are so tired!" Besides the little girl, two other blond children were also greeting Marino with great joy.

The little girl came over and asked in a slow voice: "Did you bring anything back?"

Without squealing, Marino pulled a folded napkin out of his shirt, then took a chicken breast, some pancakes, and two silver spoons from it.

The little girl cut the food into small pieces, put them on a plate, and ate them with her two brothers.

"Don't you want something to eat, Daddy?"

"No," Marino said without looking back, "you guys eat, I've already eaten."

Marino sat down facing the window and gazed blankly at the roof of the sleeping city, wondering where he would perform his "miracle" tomorrow ......