At the Ball
Laura Lassen
Beneath vibrant chaos and colors and sounds,
She blinks, and waltzes turn to war.
Still, the worrying woman stands alone,
Dreaming of a dance.
She blinks, and waltzes turn to war:
Red and bleeding dresses,
Dreaming of a dance
When the symphony finally fades.
Red and bleeding dresses!
The woman cleans her heels to rid the past.
When the symphony finally fades,
She is still alone without a partner to dance.
The woman cleans her heels to rid the past,
Watching the rest of them without her—
She is still alone without a partner to dance!
Why did her flowing dress cost thousands?
Watching the rest of them without her,
Her legs collapse in defeat.
Why did her flowing dress cost thousands?
The fabric is terribly stained with rage.
Her legs collapse in defeat,
Like a ballerina who cannot perform.
The fabric is terribly stained with rage,
With loneliness hiding in the hem.
Like a ballerina who cannot perform!
Beneath vibrant chaos and colors and sounds,
With loneliness hiding in the hem,
Still, the worrying woman stands alone.
Laura Lassen (Class of 2024) is studying English with a double minor in Political Science and Creative Writing. She is from Wayne, NJ, and in her free time, she loves playing guitar.
Laura wrote this poem for Joanna Fuhrman’s Spring 2021 Intro to Creative Writing course. Fuhrman selected the piece as a WHR featured poem.