Facing It

Any Good Poem

Richard Berlin shares Yusef Komunyakaa’s poem, “Facing It.” Born in Louisiana, Komunyakaa is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American poet known for weaving jazz rhythms, personal history (including his Vietnam War service as a correspondent), and rich vernacular into evocative works exploring identity, race, and conflict. After serving in Vietnam and earning degrees on the G.I. Bill, he has taught at universities like NYU and Princeton, becoming a distinguished poet in residence.

Dr Berlin has been writing a poem about his experience of being a doctor every month for the past 28 years in Psychiatric Times in a column called “Poetry of the Times.” He is an instructor in psychiatry, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts. His latest book isTender Fences.