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.


Divine Witness

Augustine said,
God is closer to us
than we are to ourselves.*
And dammit if he wasn’t right!

I’ll never know
when I first encountered God,
but I’ll never forget our last meeting
to which I came wide awake.

It was a hot and humid summer night.
The air conditioner labored mightily.
I was lonely but more exhausted,
struggling to hold back
the changing tides of my life.

Awakened in the dark,
I closed my eyes
then saw a flash of light,
after which I saw no other light
for two whole years.

As I bumped around in the darkness
I discerned nothing but God.
Now I see anew
and am called to be
a divine witness.

*Confessions III, 6, 11.