Cowardice

Esther Balaban

I fumble with hair ties and ribbons
Wrapped around my finger so pink.
Loss of circulation has 
never scared me. Its feeling my
pulse and imagining the blood
under my skin. 

Knowing
Is the scariest of all 
So I remove the ribbon


Esther Balaban was raised in Brooklyn, New York. She is a second-year English and European Cultural Studies major with Russian and Comparative Literature minors. Her poetry is inspired by life experiences, physical sensations, and the subtle beauty of the world around her.