Selected Poems by Riya Bansal

“Bumble Bee”

I have a honey pot
Filled with sticky thoughts
My wings are caked
With sugar
That I create
Its sweetness
Both satisfies and
Drowns me
I stop resisting
And rest on top
A buoyant force
Uplifting me

“Orbit”

One day, 
The moon turned
To the earth
And said
“The world doesn’t 
Revolve around you,
You fool”

Little did she know
That she
Was the Earth’s world

A real fool

“Pebbles”

There are pebbles in my throat
Their sharp and jagged edges
Protrude through my windpipe,
Forcing me into silence

Where does one find the water
To smoothen the sharpness
And erode, bit by bit,
The sediment that plagues me?

Little did I know
My head is submerged,
But not suffocated
It is only the parting of my lips
That will save me

So, I take a deep breath
And drown my lungs
Not with sorrow,
But with love and care

---

Riya Bansal

11/20/2020

Riya Bansal is a 2019 UC Davis alumni and a first year medical student at UCI School of Medicine. She enjoys taking walks, writing, and exploring new places. Her poem “Pebbles” was inspired by her struggle to overcome shyness and language barriers as she was growing up.