Esther Sadoff is a teacher and writer from Columbus, Ohio. She is the author of four chapbooks: "Some Wild Woman" (Finishing Line Press), "Serendipity in France" (Finishing Line Press), "Dear Silence" (Kelsay Books), and "If I Hold my Breath" (Bottlecap Press). She was nominated for a Pushcart Prize by Hole in the Head Review, and she is the winner of the Women of Ohio 2025 Poetry Award.
The mystery of growing pains is what hurts. If I felt growing pains, I didn’t know it. I can imagine what it feels like, the way I imagine it hurts when leaves fall or grow— a chemical reaction signaling discomfort, roots unsheathing themselves. There is so much that wants to grow, harden, parameters pushed to extremity. It’s like the word… Read more →
One bin is a big black barrel that spins and spins and one is a barrel for collecting rain water and there are scattered cups and tubs amidst the matted grass, half-closed lids full of tomato rinds and avocado skins. She shows me what’s inside the barrel, but it’s too cold to smell the earth so I focus my eyes… Read more →