Donna Hilbert Verse-Virtual 2018 January

January 2018

I am finally remodeling the beach house I moved into almost twenty years ago. I hope to hear the sound of waves above the saws and hammers. My family, poetry, my long-running workshop, and my standard poodle are the passions of my life and keep me eager to meet each day. Gravity: New and Selected Poems, my eighth collection, is forthcoming in spring of 2018. www.donnahilbert.com

Roses Ma Grande Joie
after Christopher Smart

For I will consider Roses my dog
For she is a standard French poodle, tall elegant and lean
For she is well-dressed in curly black hair and red collar
For though she is brilliant, never mentions IQ
For she prances the boardwalk like a pony, yet stops to greet friends
For she is an astute judge of character, only biting the wicked
For she keeps me from bad habits
By eating cigarettes and matches
For she is a mistress of Yoga and Zen
Meditating on her back, legs extended to heaven
For she sniffs at incense and candles without starting a fire
For she never breaks a date thus ruining the weekend
For she seldom passes wind or snores in her sleep
For she never demands conversation mornings before coffee
For she will eat the same meal every day without comment
For she encourages my work though she’d rather go walking
For she is not jealous of my friends or bored with their stories
For she rouses me from study in time for the sunset
For Roses, my poodle, my love
I am not forced to watch TV
Or drink wine or self-pity, sad and desperate, alone.

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