BACK FROM NOVA SCOTIA
The Tomato-coloured Couch 4:15pm
Every September after Labour Day
Our Pets
recognized the smell of Rockland County
by lifting Their Noses to the humid air
crossing the Tapanzee Bridge
happy to be coming back
to Their Most Familiar Grounds
overgrown with dried leaves
and neglect —
They couldn’t be aware
of Our Mother’s apprehensions
for a house vacated by summer tenants:
She usually said
“The House isn’t too bad”
but complained about the yard
while I adjusted to sleeping
in the dark dense air
of My School Year Room
Joanna Gilman Hyde 