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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Browse the Twelve Volumes
Brian’s collected pieces, volume by volume.
Silent People
There are some feelings
akin to my pain
I cannot touch.
It frightens me to think they are too near,
though that isn’t quite right.
It seems they are fading
into forgiveness as I let them go,
or that I never really knew them at all.
I have a tremendous capacity to feel.
Life gives me empathy and intuition
through which I often find myself
face to face with God.
And still I cannot see into the darkness.
There are feelings attached to people
I wish to bring closer.
Their silence is a fortress.
I step back.
Just naming pain
is like taking a drink from a fire hose.
We must drown a thousand times
before we learn to live under water.