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.

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Humpty Dumpty won’t go back together again.

You’ve just stumbled.
So you pick yourself up and say,
This won’t happen to me again.
But then it does,
over and over.

Now what to do
with all your certainty
well beyond its expiration:

Trade it for something stronger?

Throw it out
to make room for resentment?

Maybe just let it go,
drip by drip,
watching it evaporate
into the very same mystery
which absorbed your innocence?

At least for now
there’s no need to decide.
Get some rest
and make some room.
The day will come
when all you thought lost
comes flooding back anew.