Girl in the Doorway

Author(s):

Key Takeaways

Dorianne Laux's poem "Girl in the Doorway" explores themes of early adolescence through her daughter's experiences.
Laux's diverse career path led her to become a creative writing professor, inspiring a video series on poetry appreciation.
Richard Berlin, MD, contributes monthly poems to Psychiatric Times, reflecting on his medical experiences over 27 years.
Berlin is a psychiatry instructor at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and author of Tender Fences.

"When she steps onto the front porch, sun shimmies through the tips of her hair, the V of her legs, fans out like wings under her arms..."

Any Good Poem

Richard Berlin, MD, shares Dorianne Laux's poem "Girl in the Doorway" about her 12 year old daughter’s early adolescence.

Laux was born in 1952, worked as a sanatorium cook, a gas station manager, and as a maid before receiving a BA in English from Mills College in 1988. She is a professor at North Carolina State University’s creative writing program, and at the MFA in Writing Program at Pacific University. You may recognize Laux as the inspiration for this video series, and the quote that starts each of these videos: “Any good poem is asking you simply to slow down.”

Dr Berlin has been writing a poem about his experience of being a doctor every month for the past 27 years in Psychiatric Times in a column called “Poetry of the Times.” He is instructor in psychiatry, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts. His latest book is Tender Fences.