Joanna Gilman Hyde

"Good Morning, World!"

THE HAWK PORTICO IN FEBRUARY

The Hawk Portico 3:40pm

Blanketed in Eliza’s cream-coloured Horse Throw

Mrs. Blair slouches slightly in Her Red Deck Chair

within the enclosure of Her Stoop

She wears a sun hat to protect a possible cancerous spot

on Her Right Cheek

She wears Her Serengetis

because The Sun is that bright

Her Daughter Eliza, driving Her 2000 Black Lincoln LS

pulls into the front yard announcing

“Mom, You look like an idiot.”

Then for something a little more descriptive:

“You look like a moth,

or someone Who’s trying to look like a moth –”

“A Lunar Moth?”

PERCEPTION

The Tomato-coloured Couch 1:55pm

DHW

You can’t get Me

by presenting health care professionals

dressed in black

dropping Me into The Black Abyss

of the blood-letting chair

making Me have to go to The Pristine Public Wash Room

where I heavily considered drawing Your Initials

on the wall above The Mirror —

and Outside!

Everywhere it seemed I heard

Your well-used “See Ya!”

You showed Me every arrangement

of Your Initials on license plates

but I knew I could get home

where I could take an Ativan

under My Direction

NUMBER 38 (NO SIGNIFICANCE)

Public Health Office, Barrington approx. 10:00am

I am no longer in league

with The Aliens

in Their Purple & Black

I wear White & Aqua now

Beige, Grey, Dark Brown

still have My Blue Jeans

& Linen Tops

All My Black Articles

have been tossed —

Eliza took Two Black Garbage Bags

to The Salvation Army

but was mad at Me

for throwing Them out —

Hunter understands

FEELING

The Tomato-coloured Couch 5:22pm

When The Depression finally broke

I was sitting on the back stoop

of The Shakespeare House

— can’t remember the year —

drinking seltzer & red wine

reading Gogol’s Diary of A Madman

CONSTRUCT

Today I made a symbolic abortion

construction

out of My Red Lace Underwear

& Wire Coat Hanger

They’re arranged on a 16″ x 20″ white canvas board

painted with Red

& Purple

& glittery Silver nail polish

I think It looks

primitive

Indian

REACTION

The Hawk Kitchen 8:00pm

Purple is The Colour of My Heart

vacated

Silver The Colour of My Jewels —

Red is My Fury

no longer suppressed

These Three Components

sustain Me

now that The Little Man in Black

is Gone

PAINTING PLAN

The Hawk Kitchen 6:32pm

I could sit on Our New Kitchen Floor

Indian Style, like a Child

with stretched canvas

in front of Me, flat —

I could puddle The Purple

& get The Metallic Grey, Silver

oozing into The Plum

iridescent

& splotched with Red

from a spray can

liquid & interceding

out of My Lap

BLACK JOURNAL, BLACK & SILVER PEN

The Hawk Kitchen 4:30pm

I feel like physically throwing

paint around on a canvas

on the basement floor

or deck with drop cloths

& weights against the wind

an 8 X 10 footer

of purple & metallic grey

NO BLACK

hints, territories, of red

I have never before

felt this urge

UNPOSSESSED

The Hawk West Desk Window 11:12am

The Only Remnants

of My Black Possessions

are This Journal, My Pen

My Black Cat Astro

& One Pair of Jet Bead Earrings

Given To Me

By My Mother

NEW COLOURS

The Tomato-coloured Couch 4:33pm

I feel like throwing out

all My Black Clothes —

The Black Jesus Clothes

were for an operation

of secrecy & deceit

what colours can I resurrect?

Red & White

The Colours of Alarm

I am My Own Statement

of Alarm

Black Jesus is called off

Red is My Colour

& White is My Flag

My Canadian Flag

with Silver carrying Me

As I Fly