think nothing if one can not think of it

To think oneself again 

into a tiny hole of self 

and pull the covers round 

and close the mouth— 

shut down the eyes and hands, 

keep still the feet, 

and think nothing if one can 

not think of it— 

a space in whose embrace 

such substance is, 

a place of emptiness 

the heart’s regret. 

World’s mind is after all 

an afterthought 

of what was there before 

and is there still. 

 

[Robert Creeley {1926-2005} 'To think…', from Selected Poems, 1945-2005]