Eye am in
The Silver Anniversary
of M(eye) Mother’s Death:
The Shower of Silver Lights
is 25 Years Old
and now Eye am free
of Its Stigma
and am living
under The Sun
& Moon
Eye have lifted M(eye) Shade
to The Alien Eye
of comfort & quiet
in the dark of morning’s night —
It shines through M(eye) Crack
as a blink of The Light
from out on The Cape
to surrender M(eye) Fight
Eye live in a hutch
of snow and ice
Eye need my crutch —
that would be nice
EYE have hung M(eye) X
upon the wall
below M(eye) Painting
bought
of someone’s old house
done in pink —
a Nova Scotia house
out in the bleak
Eye have hung My Portrait
upon the wall
above His Books
Eye would forestall
We’re in a contest
to & fro
& Eye don’t care
where He goes
He thought Eye would write
pretty poems
& paint Him pictures of blue
& white
He was wrong
for Eye have come
to see Him as
My Only Plight
if Eye could dip His Head
in Black
I would fight
for My Self
back
but He has The Bucks
Eye need to live
& so Eye am helpless
to forgive
It was in a dream
Eye gave M(eye) Arms
to badly needed rest —
Eye used The Body
of M(eye) X
to make a cross
upon M(eye) Bed
Where is My Poison Ring?
The Silver Casing w/ Black
Onyx
My Mother gave Me
When Eye turned 13?
Every Spermatozoon is a STAR
Every birth a miracle
Eye live in a bastion
Of Human survival
Where the women don’t drink
And make their homes
For their families
Where they compare notes
Of husbands and ex’s
And children grown
And make their beds
For each other
Eye have had a long day
And there is a rose
On my vanity
For my mother
From my mother
Made from her long black chain
And my red satin hair holder
Knotted as the bud
Joanna Gilman Hyde 