It may be entirely unintentional, but I was so struck by what I see in the shadow. There's a story I'm sure you remember in the Old Testament about Sodom and Gomorrah. Despite God's instruction not to watch, Lot's wife turns to look back at the destruction of the city and she is instantly turned into a pillar of salt, all that is left of her mortal remains.
In Emily's picture, I see The Great Indifference represented by the scorching desert sun and it burns through you to reveal all that you are to it: a shadow of white salt and a few embers of gold. Is the gold what remains of the soul? The spark of life that now returns to the unknown? Does it go to heaven or hell? Is it reincarnated to live again in the body of another? Perhaps its glow just fades into the desert sand with the setting of the sun to never breathe again.
I can't wait to see the finished version. Such a simple image and yet she seems to capture in an instant her dad's spirit and his musings on life as we, your followers, have come to know and understand.