11. The Uses of Not
by Ursula K. Le Guin
Thirty spokes
meet in the hub.
Where the wheel isn’t
is where it’s useful.
Hollowed out,
clay makes a pot.
Where the pot’s not
is where it’s useful.
Cut doors and windows
to make a room.
Where the room isn’t,
there’s room for you.
So the profit in what is
is in the use of what isn’t.
Le Guin, Ursula K.. Lao Tzu: Tao Te Ching: A Book about the Way and the Power of the Way. United Kingdom, Shambhala, 2019.
