The Tomato-coloured Couch 8:25pm
I have emasculated God
in five well-considered
bites
I took Him in & swallowed
hard
& stood My Poise
in front of My Husband
The Hawk West Desk Window 3:00pm
I have two worn out Birks Boxes
for My Single Silver Pen
re-established in Its Domain
each time I finish
writing — oh like a body
underneath a coffin lid —
lay Me down in a tomb
marked for eternity
by Ever Stylish Artists
with Their Magic Implements
recoiling
from Their Brevity
Eliza’s Room 2:30pm
I live in a lavender room
where I have pulled up
the curtain against a backdrop
of rolling waves
and scrub spruce tree tops
above a painted chest
housing My Mother’s Childhood Diaries
I am sanctified
in My Daughter’s Room
where The Out-stretched Quilt
of rippling bands of purple
spreads Itself beneath two walls
of My World Trade Center Rooftop Painting
titled Self Organizing Galaxy
and beneath My Signature
in three-foot-high letters
coloured Black
The Tomato-coloured Couch 5:22pm
My Halo is back
visiting Me for half an hour
while I listened
to world financial forecasts
with Hunter
The Tomato-coloured Couch 4:33pm
I will not be burned
at the stake I will be shot
in The Back again
The Tomato-coloured Couch 2:39pm
Giant Foundation
for Me to stand supported
about to topple?
*founder of The Cooper Union for The Advancement of Science and Art
written in honour of Peter Cooper’s birthday February 12, 1791
The Hawk Queen Bed 9:52pm
If I were to paint
a picture of My Self
what colour would I use
to start? Yellow, please
as I see Me in a room
of Gold
with Purple Rings
under My Eyes
as I see Them sag
into disproportion
I would put Chartreuse
upon My Fallen Lids
stark Black for Brows
still arched
My Two Left Moles
would be three-dimensional
& My Lips, cracked slightly
with age lines
would be a Lurid Red
maybe smearing across
The Right Side
Of My Face
Joanna Gilman Hyde 