Brian’sPoems

The Collected Writings of Brian J. Mueller

A single poem, met at the right moment, can change a life.

Search and read all 1,834 pieces by Brian J. Mueller — 1,675 poems, 38 prose pieces, and 121 haiku from 12 published volumes. Free to read and share.

Search tips

Search by title, first line, poem text, book, or type — results appear as you type. Look inside the poems for any word or line, or wrap a phrase in "quotes" to find it exactly. Use the chips and the book menu to narrow things down.

← All poems

A Day Off

I’ll remind you,
	if you’ll remind me,
that it’s okay
to sometimes simply
stay in bed,
instead of showing up
in person.

Be careful not to linger
where the rules
of how you must be,
and how you present,
have no wiggle room.

Personal days and bereavement leave
come from a place of abundance,
where patience and empathy
have purchase.

Forty or fifty years ago
something changed.
We turned away from each other
	and inward.

Now the wind is colder,
the days a bit darker,
and the colors have all faded.

The soul knows
what our minds cannot admit.

Sometimes we just need
	a day off.

Published in