Joanna Gilman Hyde

The Hawk Living Room 3:11pm

Guess how old I was

when I engaged

in the following activities:

–

Tearing into strips

the striped vinyl cover

to My Dollies’ changing table

& wadding the shreds

up in My Fists

to stuff in My Mother’s

waste paper basket

–

Clutching Two Hundred Wedding Photos

to My Chest & throwing Them

One By One

to The Night

along the ample length

of water frontage

in the Town of Shelburne

–

Emptying The Entire Contents

of My Second Husband’s Brief Case

cradling The Papers in My Arms

casting Them aside

Piece By Piece

into The Twilight

along one mile of old rail road track

through Barrington Passage

–

On a clear day in June

Shredding Five Known Copies

of My Own Manuscript

So Long Sam

taking seven hours

consuming as many beers

& putting Three Bags Full

out by the side of the road