The Hawk Kitchen 10:22am
I watch the thorough glitter
out on The Water
through The Window Screen
(it’s too windy to sit outside)
My Husband’s Blood Pressure
is precarious
making Me jittery
while He’s at work
refusing to see HIS Doctor
Shelburne, NS 12:30pm
Take The Power
That Is Yours
From Your Hair
Your Dress
Your Silver Jewellery
–
Take The Power
From Your Mind
Your Dreams
Your Aspirations
–
Look To The Sky
What Birds Do You See?
Are They Black Or White
& What Does That Mean?
The Hawk West Desk Window 7:36pm
I wore My Blue Nose Dress
red sleeveless top, blue skirt
with white linear arrows appliquéd
on front, pointing up
— or were they pointing down?
It was The Outfit I remember
of all My Childhood Ferry Crossings
driven from Valley Cottage, New York
by a sleep-deprived Mother
to Bar Harbour, Maine’s Blue Nose Port
— with a younger Brother I barely remember —
driven and ferried every summer to Nova Scotia
The Province I would stay in
all My Adult Life —
married twice
with the lives & death of My 2.4 Children —
to live in old houses
on an island
on the mainland in woods named Atlantic
in an historic town named Shelburne
in a doctor’s big white castle in Barrington Passage
& now a new house
— new island —
on the point farthest south:
The Hawk, Cape Sable Island
where My Second Husband sleeps
on low blood pressure
while maintaining His high pressure job
taking care of nearly half the population
this end of the county —
and what do I do?
I am a housewife —
The Laziest In The World
according to My Daughter
& I Write To Tell The World
The Hawk Deck NOON
The Grey-robed Figure
spirited out of bed at 11:00
takes Her Tea out to The Deck
assesses Her Timing
of This Morning’s Flirtation
with Depression
marked by Her Son’s Imminent Departure
for which She is cancelling
The Last Supper
The Hawk Queen Bed 9:40pm
I hear The Waves
My Backdrop to The Peepers
with My Husband’s Warm Hand
across My Left Arm
I am in My Cradle
My Bassinet
I will lie here
until
I die
Barrington Passage 6:15pm
I could sing a song
of cars & women —
all My Husband’s responsibility —
oil for The Lincoln Eliza refuses to drive
beer for My imbibere
& dinner reservations
The Hawk 4:50pm
I sing My Heart out
for every sailor Who comes along
for My Son Who’s later than expected
driving from Montreal
with an Australian
ready to take in Nova Scotia
–
I stumble over being A Mother
to My 25 year-old Son
skipping stones as if He were 9
& I forgot to buy more beer
in case He & His Buddy come back
before the obligatory good-bye
Highway 103, NS 5:00pm
Today at The Halifax Shopping Centre
I saw Two Muslim Women
talking on cell phones
through Head Scarves —
One Face completely veiled —
This Day when Hunter bought
smoky quartz earrings
for My Early Birthday
The Hawk Dining Room 12:50pm
He’s out there write now
pecking around the stone wall
dividing our property from the neighbours’
He’s a Northern Flicker
with a brilliant red crest
on the back of His Head
black bib under His Chin
(if birds have chins)
tabby striping on His Back
& buff with black spots underneath
He’s been here since I first spotted Him
at the other stone wall along the drive
— He seems to find stuff
among the rocks
with His Long Beak — He’s a Woodpecker
Colaptes Auratus
Oh, He just pooped!
Note: He’s a She – minus a back “moustache”
Joanna Gilman Hyde 