When god poured me
From his perfect mould
He forgot to tell me
That I would get old
My skin would wrinkle
My hair would turn grey
And that even my sweet tooth
Would decay
Dear god please
Take pity on me
And recast me in
Your foundry
A magnificent bronze
As smooth as can be
No lines, no grey
Just perfect immortality
Michael Ashby
Bereavement poems
Swan Song
The swan silently
Crossed the river
No reflection, no ripple
In her wake
Lit by a moving sunbeam
She crossed the water
Just, for my sake
I sat down aboard her back
As her head turned to me
And she looked deeply into my eyes, asking
Are you really, really, ready
I nodded, as tears rained, from my face
To join countless others in their river
The swan started swimming,
And slowly singing
The most beautiful music
I had ever heard in my life
And then the swan
Suddenly changed, from black,
Into a dazzling white
And I stopped crying, and started smiling
As together, we crossed over
Into the most brilliant of lightMichael Ashby
Funeral Poems
Poems about death and bereavement can be used for uplifting and inspirational, or sad verses for a funeral or memorial program. You are free to read or say any of these memorial poems for funerals at services, speeches and readings for your special dead departed. We sincerely hope you find on thefuneralpoem.com website the funeral poem that you are seeking either for yourself, or as you remember your loved one.
We also have funeral poems for a sailor, funeral poems for a football player, funeral poems for a golfer, funeral poems for an actor and funeral poems for a bingo player . For those of you searching for humerous, witty & funny memorial poems, we have recently included the modern poems I Want To Be Buried With My Mobile Phone and Milking The Moments.
Our Blog includes famous epitaphs, last words and quotes to help you find comforting words for the death of your loved one (mother, dad, grandmother, grandpa, wife, husband, partner, brother, sister or best friend).
How To Write Remembrance Poems
Should you be considering writing a funeral poem, please allow us to encourage you to give it a go. You may well find the process of creating your poem therapeutic, cathartic, spiritually helpful and beneficial to you as an aid to the grieving process. You will need an idea - for example your favourite relevant memory - for the story you will poetically recount or the message you wish to impart either on your behalf, or for the deceased loved one.
We would recommend that normally the poem should not be over a page in length, so as to retain the attention of your listeners and also to sharpen the focus of your message or anecdote.
To rhyme or not to rhyme? is the question that only you can answer. Should you decide to rhyme, even if just on a few lines, a good thesaurus is invaluable in suggesting alternative words at a line end. They sometimes fit so well, it's as if it was meant to be. We prefer using rhyme, because in our opinion it enhances the resonance and performance of a funeral poem.
When you've finished your composition in verse, do practice reading it out loud by yourself, and then when your feeling comfortable, do perform your work to someone you can trust to give you some honest feedback.
Our admiration goes out to you, but please remember two very important points; until your funeral poem is finished always carry a pad and pencil or their electronic equivalent with you so as not to forget any creative lightbulb ideas. Secondly, do take your time over the reading, remembering to pause when appropriate to the poem as you feel and value the moment you have created.
History
Part of the yesteryears of loss poems can be sensed from its Latin (the language of ancient Rome and its' empire 27BC-AD476, originating in Latium) expression epicedia meaning funeral odes (lyric poems), plural of epicedium which in its turn is from the Greek epikedeion ( from epi upon and kedos grief, care). Mention must be made of the famous Greek poet Callimachus (died 240BC) who was at the Library Of Alexandria in Egypt. He refused to submit to the epic poems of the day and championed short, concise and succinct poems.
Delivered from these days is the elegy, a poem expressing sadness and grief at loss, one of the most famous being by the roman poet Catallus expressing grief at the death of his brother, the elegy ending "and forever, brother, hail and farewell".