BILLION YEAR SUPPER
by Joanna Gilman Hyde
The Hawk Living Room 7:30pm
I ate My Potato Salad
& drank a beer
here by the open Living Room Window
at the edge of The Tomato-coloured Couch
but that was at the edge of The Galaxy
where stars burst & die
I would lie My Head on a blanket
& listen to the aftershocks
wafting through
on the surge
of ocean mist
& bird call
Joanna Gilman Hyde 
Getting goosebumps from this one! 🙂 Great!
Thanks for commenting. Did you think there was anything awkward about the tense in “I would lie My Head”?
Hmm, the word “lay” is an irregular verb that confuses me as well. I looked its rules up on a grammar website and found that the word ‘lay’ takes a direct object while the word ‘lie’ does not. So I think in this case, it might be “lay”, as “my head” is the direct object – but it did not come across wrong to me as I was reading it 🙂 Your words are always very graceful and well written.
Thank you Natalie — I was wondering about “would” as well as “lie” vs “lay” and how this action so described could go with having had supper. I guess I was just afraid it was confusing, but I like the internal rhyme between “burst & die” and “I would lie” Thank you for your help — I do not know much in the way of rules of grammar– I only know how to write intuitively as my mother was an English teacher and writer and both my grandfathers were acclaimed writers.
Yes – everything fits very nicely! I didn’t think your playing with tenses interfered with the writing at all; in fact, I think it enhanced it 🙂 If you don’t mind me asking, who were your grandfathers?
Thank you again. I’m glad you’re OK with the poem.
My late grandfathers were Robert Wilson Hyde and his son Bobby of Santa Barbara CA and Howard Talbot Walden 2nd of Snedens Landing, Palisades, NY and Jordan Bay, Nova Scotia