Joanna Gilman Hyde

"Good Morning, World!"

Month: July, 2013

I MADE A BED

The Hawk Portico 5:15pm

I Made A Bed

Of Crystal Sheets

& Strew Them Head To Toe

I Laid Across Them A Quilt

Of Rings Of

Pink & Green To Show

I Still Had Christmas

Somewhere Deep

Tried To Let It Go

But My Lover Never Materialized

— He’s Of The Mind —

Still, At Best, My Shadow

SIGNATURE CALL

The Hawk Portico 3:00pm

The Signalling Call Of The Gull

Is To Alert Others

But That I Too Hear It

Must Mean, Momentarily,

That I Am In An Exchange

Of

Ear

And

Voice

ENCOUNTER WITH SELF

The Hawk Deck 12:30pm

I am out of the literal

& metaphoric bed

of My First 52 Years

I have been shedding My 145 pounds

& am down to a proper 136

with two cups of tea

& half a banana left by Eliza

I have suffered a 24-hour fatigue

& wondered if I was not eating enough —

So What Will Become of My

Shredded Manuscript?

(need I remind You, My Audience,

that 2 copies may, with the Luck of God,

still exist)

& if  They do not?

I must accept Their Loss

& shed Them as well

BOOK II

PLEASANT THINGS TO DO*

Things To Do On Your Own

Write a letter to a friend

Write in your diary

Play a computer game

Play a musical instrument or sing

Paint, draw, or do some pottery

Do some woodwork

Do a jigsaw puzzle

Read your favourite magazine, newspaper, or novel

Buy or make a present for someone

Look through your favourite photo album

Play a card game (e.g., solitaire)

Things To Do Around The House

Gardening

Do some handiwork around the house

Rearrange the furniture

Sewing, knitting, listen or dance to  music

Watch short TV shows

Play with your pets

Sit in the sun

Make a cake

Social Activities

Phone or visit a friend

Invite a friend over for a video and popcorn

Prepare a special meal for friends or family

See a play or movie

Pamper self — visit restaurant or hairdresser or masseuse

Active Things

Go for a stroll, brisk walk, or nature walk

Run up and down stairs for a few minutes

Do 10 minutes of gentle stretching exercises

Play ping-pong or tennis, golf, swim, bike

Do some aerobics or weight lifting

Visit a museum, art gallery, book-store or library

Visit the zoo

* From The Canadian Network of Mood and Anxiety Treatments (CANMAT)

 

EPILOGUE

The Hawk Family Room 1:22pm

Hunter’s cat Cami

reappeared today

one day shy of a week

since disappearing —

a brown & ginger little cat

Who gingerly taps Hunter’s Arm

when She wants to go out

or wants a treat

NEXT?

The Tomato-coloured Couch 1:52pm

I Am The Silver Bullet

Circling This Globe

Spermatozoan

In My Femininity

NARY A CAT

The Tomato-coloured Couch 8:00pm

All Other Losses

Seem To Culminate

In The Loss Of A Pet:

down to The Fish Plant I went

in the blowing fog

to look for Cami

& saw nary a cat

only a nice man

who wondered what I wanted

“I’m looking for a lost cat”

“Oh, I’ve had about five people so far

this summer —

one fella even had a picture — ”

believe it or not

a helium balloon

flew

overhead

ARTIST ON THE ROOF

The Tomato-coloured Couch 6:45pm

I’ve come out

of Hyde-ing

in My Rose-Coloured Top

arms above My Head

holding up My Model Canvas

behind Me

like a stretched-out butterfly

“Artist On The Roof”

in lit-up red

with My Name

on The Plaza

of the Galactic

Pool

THE LAST PAGE

The Tomato-coloured Couch 4:40pm

My Fame Will Be

This World’s

Freedom

When I Am Found Out

Inside & Out

We Will No Longer

Believe

In Schizophrenia

Bi-polar

& Other Multitudinous

“Psychiatric Illnesses”

Silver Will Sky-rocket

Gold Will

Linger In Its

Old-fashioned Luster

Man & Woman Will Live Together

Unrivalled

I AM DRESSING

The Tomato-coloured Couch 2:10pm

I Am Dressing

For My Painting Today

Top Colour Orange

For The Spiral

Blue Jeans For The Sky

Magic Dangly Earrings

For Sprays & Sprinkles Along Curved Edges

Diamond Rings Of Wedding & Question Mark Moon

For The Interpretation