The Hawk Portico 5:00pm
My House faces South
here on The Hawk —
a spit of built-up sand
growing only scrub spruce
& beach dunes
— grass does grow in My Yard
except for a barren spot
where We can park —
but yes, This Is Where
I have found such joy
in the sounds of The Birds
& The Waves — Waves
all the way around —
I hear Them to My Right Today
as I gaze to the blue horizon
to My Left
The Hawk Portico 3:45pm
“All She did was sit
out on that front stoop
of Hers
while other women
hung out wash
or brought in groceries
She never seemed to have anyone
over
— Oh She’d talk on the phone
al-right
half The Hawk could hear —
but how could She just sit
like that —
sit & look
at The Ocean?”
The Hawk Portico 3:15pm
I live at A Beach Resort
out on My Portico
with potted palm fronds
to either side
& all The Bird Song
I could cling to
above
the gentle surf
out front
The Hawk Living Room 2:00pm
I am sitting cross-legged
in a column
of light
on My Living Room Floor
I have a cup of tea
within reach
The Radio is on
playing a song
I like
& I Am Dreaming
The Hawk Deck 10:40am
The Scraggly Apple
is a stunted tree
in My Back Yard —
The Only Tree
within Our Boundaries
used by various types of birds
as a deck-side outpost
for viewing and warbling:
I’ve seen Jays, Robins
Grackles, Sparrows, Warblers
and once a small Woodpecker
— anything heavier
would not be given perch
by Its nearly leafless
lichen-covered
branches
Joanna Gilman Hyde 