IV. THE CURTAIN

I do not fear

You, or me, or death,

There now is nothing left to fear

But this,

This curtain of blackness.

Once I feared you,

And all you thought and felt

And all you said and did:

I feared myself,

And all you made me think and feel

And say and do —

Now I no longer fear

Thinking, feeling, saying, doing,

Nor blankness, silence, apathy, torpor —

I do not fear

You, or me, or death —

I only fear

This curtain of blackness

Which is your absence.