THE JORDAN BAY HOUSE
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The Hawk Kitchen Outpost 10:05am
At Jordan Bay
My Grandmother
always watched The Ocean
dazzling —
She would tell Me
about The Diamonds
and Stars
and She would
allow Me to
relish Them and to
revel in Them
The Hawk Corner Room 12:06pm
My Grandfather married
a Southern Belle
named Josephine Elizabeth Meadow
Who grew magnificent gardens
& cooked macaroni and cheese
She stood beside Her Nasturtiums
in a bright orange house coat
& sang Me a song
“Sweetest Little Joge —
Everybody Knows
Everywhere She goes
She’s Mighty Like A Rose”
The Hawk West Desk Window 7:48pm
There Shimmers A Silver Sky
to thank Me for My smallest
of tasks — a sewing job
on My Husband’s pants
and the careful look
I took — lingeringly
at My Grandmother’s
needle book
with a yellow cover
and eight red wool pages
enclosed with a hand made clasp
to go inside
My Strawberry Painted
Sewing Box
The Hawk Queen Bed 8:48pm
In The Jordan Bay House
Howard and I were put to bed
at 8 o’clock
with late evening sun
pouring in over the ridge
to the west of our Grandparents’
It came through uncurtained windows
as We lay in Our Beds
tired from Our Days
at the shore
or helping in Granmamma’s garden
or Pappy’s workshop —
those were the domains
of Our Grandparents while Our Mother
worked on Her Island House
half a harbour away
where She would sleep
forever when She died
with sheep walking over
Her Grave
The Hawk Basement 1:22pm
Last Night I had
A Poem in My Head
as I lay in My Warm Bed
too tired to rise & write It down
Is It trickling down through
The Remainder
of This Day
too as My Grandmother would say:
NOTHING IS LOST?
The Hawk Bedroom 8:30am
I was That Child
exclaiming as I came through The Gate
of My Grandmother’s Jordan Bay Garden:
“Granmama — You have the most beautiful garden
in The Whole Wide World –”
exclaiming with feigned delight
because I knew
how much I could please Her
Joanna Gilman Hyde 