The silhouette of My Scraggly Apple
with Its new three leaves
looks like the edging
on some of My Paintings:
blobs of lichen and lines —
drips carried
off by the end
of a paint stick
The Hawk Kitchen Outpost 12:50pm
When I was a strapping girl
in a swim suit
I pushed My Fearful Brother
off the bow of Our Mother’s Molly
and He yelled at me
from the splashing water —
“What’d ya do that
for Joanna!”
The Tomato-coloured Couch 5:35pm
I lost a hand-made earring
in the sands of My Mother’s Island
I lost a hand-made sunset ring
in the waves of the Jersey Shore
Both coincided with boyfriends
of My Youth
One Whose name I don’t remember
& One I hope to see again
now in Middle Age
Joanna Gilman Hyde 