FUNERAL POEMS

Poems are an excellent way of expressing your sadness and grief at a time of loss.

Poems may help express your thoughts and feelings about death.

You will find a selection of free funeral poems and memorial poetry at Poem4Today.

We have the best selection of funeral poems to console you in your grief, to pay tribute to a loved one, or to include in a memorial service.

Too often we don't realize
what we have until it's gone.
Too often we're too stubborn
to say, "Sorry, I was wrong."
Too often it seems we hurt the
ones closest to our hearts, and
we let the most foolish things
tear us apart.

Those we love don't go away,
They walk beside us every day.
Unseen, unheard, but always near,
Still loved, still missed and very dear.

Death is nothing else but going home to God, the bond of love will be unbroken for all eternity
~ Mother Teresa

Grief never ends...but it changes. It is a passage, not a place to stay. Grief is not a sign of weakness, nor a lack of faith... It is the price of love.

Poem for a Funeral: The Walk

You did not walk with me
Of late to the hill-top tree
By the gated ways,
As in earlier days;
You were weak and lame,
So you never came,
And I went alone, and I did not mind,
Not thinking of you as left behind.

I walked up there to-day
Just in the former way;
Surveyed around
The familiar ground
By myself again;
What difference, then?
Only that underlying sense
Of the look of the room on returning
thence.

~ Thomas Hardy

Looking for poems or readings to use at a funeral or memorial service, see...

"Funeral and Memorial Service Readings, Poems and Tributes"

You may wish to use readings or poetry during a funeral service, at a memorial service, as part of a eulogy speech or as part of an "In Loving Memory" tribute.

Even using a short poem on the card that you send with the flowers for the funeral can help you find the right words.

If you would like to purchase a selection of the best poems for funerals, including best poems for a funeral for the loss of a mother, father, wife, husband or a baby, to give comfort in a time of need, please click on the link to your right, entitled...

"Funeral and Memorial Service Readings, Poems and Tributes"

Grief

I didn't know a heart could die
before it stopped beating.
I didn't know a life could cease
before it stopped breathing.

I didn't know how devastation
could wend a living soul
I didn't know how death could make
one lose all self control.

I didn't know the pain of loss
was so intense and sharp.
I didn't know the depth of void
death leaves within the heart.

I didn't know how often tears
would redden hurting eyes.
I didn't know how hard it was
to say one's last good-bye's.

I didn't know that pain would come
and go as it well pleased.
I didn't know that joy is scarce
to those who are bereaved.

I didn't know that time would stop
and meaning cease to be.
I didn't know that friends would pray
but shy away from me.

I didn't know how difficult
to get the whole night through.
I didn't know the strength it took
for simple tasks to do.

I didn't know that as time pass
slowly, the pain subsides.
I didn't know what I thought was lost
still in my heart resides.

Now I know a little spark,
somehow in me remained.
Now I know that someway,
my life will be sustained.

Now I know the feelings felt,
were all a part of grief.
Now I know how fervent prayer
helped me to find relief.

So rest assured my unknown friends,
though healing comes real slow.
It actually does get better
for now, I truly know.

Yes I survived my loved one's death
that occurred this time last year.
I feel the loss and always will
but the pain's much less severe.

~ Saundra L. Washington

A Letter from Heaven

When tomorrow starts without me
And I'm not there to see;
If the sun should rise and find your eyes
All filled with tears for me.

I wish so much you wouldn't cry
The way you did today;
While thinking of the many things
We didn't get to say.

I know how much you love me
As much as I love you;
And each time that you think of me,
I know you'll miss me too.

When tomorrow starts without me,
Don't think we're far apart
For every time you think of me,
I'm right here in your heart.

Funeral Poem: Afterglow

I'd like the memory of me to be a happy one.
I'd like to leave an afterglow of smiles when life is done.
I'd like to leave an echo whispering softly down the ways,
Of happy times and laughing times and bright and sunny days.
I'd like the tears of those who grieve, to dry before the sun;
Of happy memories that I leave when life is done.

Funeral Poem for Him: He Is Gone

You can shed tears that he is gone
Or you can smile because he has lived

You can close your eyes and pray that he will come back
Or you can open your eyes and see all that he has left

Your heart can be empty because you can't see him
Or you can be full of the love that you shared

You can turn your back on tomorrow and live yesterday
Or you can be happy for tomorrow because of yesterday

You can remember him and only that he is gone
Or you can cherish his memory and let it live on

You can cry and close your mind, be empty and turn your back
Or you can do what he would want, smile, open your eyes, love and go on.

~ David Harkin

Rejoice

Let not you heart be troubled
Nor overcome by fear,
For even in the time of death
Our Lord is always there.
I lived my life before you;
In faith I followed God.
I leave this life believing
I'm safe beneath His blood.
I've fought the fight of faith,
Overshadowed by His grace.
All this I did so gladly,
Just to see Him face to face.
Grieve not that I am going;
Rejoice that I can go
And turn your face toward Jesus,
His Love He will bestow.
I leave you with my blessings,
That you will ever know,
My love is ever with you,
Wherever you may go.
I now await your coming,
Where the victory song is heard.
To see the glory of our Lord,
As told us in His Word.
So weep not at my passing,
Rejoice, I say, Rejoice.
Let it be a time of gladness;
Rejoice, Rejoice, Rejoice.

~ Doyle Suits

Funeral Poem for Her: Away

I cannot say and I will not say
That she is dead, she is just away.
With a cheery smile and a wave of hand
She has wandered into an unknown land;
And left us dreaming how very fair
Its needs must be, since she lingers there.

And you-oh you, who the wildest yearn
From the old-time step and the glad return-
Think of her faring on, as dear
In the love of there, as the love of here
Think of her still the same way, I say;
She is not dead, she is just away.

~ James Whitcomb Riley

Song

When I am dead, my dearest,
Sing no sad songs for me;
Plant thou no roses at my head,
Nor shady cypress tree:
Be the green grass above me
With showers and dewdrops wet;
And if thou wilt, remember,
And if thou wilt, forget.

I shall not see the shadows,
I shall not feel the rain;
I shall not hear the nightingale
Sing on, as if in pain;
And dreaming through the twilight
That doth not rise nor set,
Haply I may remember,
And haply may forget

~ Christina Rossetti

The poem, Funeral Blues, by W.H. Auden, was used to such great effect in the film
"Four Weddings and a Funeral" and is one that is most poignant.

Funeral Blues

Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
Prevent the dog from barking with the juicy bone.
Silence the pianos and, with muffled drum,
Bring out the coffin. Let the mourners come.

Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead
Scribbling in the sky the message: “He is dead!”
Put crepe bows around the white necks of the public doves.
Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves.

He was my north, my south, my east and west,
My working week and Sunday rest,
My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song.
I thought that love would last forever; I was wrong.

The stars are not wanted now; put out every one.
Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun.
Pour away the ocean and sweep up the wood.
For nothing now can come to any good.

~ W.H. Auden

Poetry for a Funeral

Miss Me But Let Me Go

When I come to the end of the road
and the sun has set on me,
I want no rites in a gloom filled room
why cry for a soul set free.
Miss me a little--but not too long,
and not with your head bowed low,
Remember the love that we once shared,
miss me--but let me go.
For this is the journey that we all must take,
and each must go alone.
It's all part of the Master's plan,
a step on the road to home.
When you are lonely and sick of heart,
go to the friends we know.
And bury your sorrows in doing good deeds,
miss me--but let me go.

Funeral Poem for Mother

If Roses Grow in Heaven

If roses grow in heaven,
Lord please pick a bunch for me,
Place them in my Mother's arms
and tell her they're from me.

Tell her I love her and miss her,
and when she turns to smile,
place a kiss upon her cheek
and hold her for a while.

Because remembering her is easy,
I do it every day,
but there's an ache within my heart
that will never go away

Funeral Poem: Looking for the Sunrise

I’m not looking for the sunset,
As the swift years come and go;
I am looking for the sunrise,
And the golden morning glow,
Where the light of heaven’s glory
Will break forth upon my sight,
In the land that knows no sunset,
Nor the darkness of the night.

I’m not going down the pathway
Toward the setting of the sun,
Where the shadows ever deepen
When the day at last is done;
I am walking up the hillside
Where the sunshine lights the way,
To the glory of the sunrise
Of God’s never-ending day.

I’m not going down, but upward,
And the path is never dim,
For the day grows ever brighter
As I journey on with Him.
So my eyes are on the hilltops,
Waiting for the sun to rise,
Waiting for His invitation
To the home beyond the skies.

~ Albert Simpson Reitz

Funeral Poem: Joy In Death

If tolling bell I ask the cause
'A soul has gone to God,'
I'm answered in a lonesome tone;
Is heaven then so sad?

The bells should joyful ring to tell
A soul had gone to heaven,
Would seem to me a proper way
A good news should be given.

~ Emily Dickinson

Funeral Poem: The Garden That I Love

The Garden that I love is full of Light;
It lies upon the sloping of a hill,
Where Dawn first stirs the curtains of the Night,
And the breeze whispers when the Noon is still.

The garden that I love is full of Peace;
The voices of the vale are faint and far,
The busy murmurs of the highway cease,
And silently, at evening, comes the Star.

The garden that I love is full of Dreams;
Visions of joy gone by, and bliss that waits,
Beyond the furthest verge of sunset gleams,
With the wide opening of the Golden Gates.

The garden that I love is full of Rest;
God's own fair Acre, where His dear ones lie,
In the safe shelter of the kind earth's breast,
Waiting His Easter dawning up the sky.

~ F.L. Henderson

A Song of Living

Because I have loved life, I shall have no sorrow to die.
I have sent up my gladness on wings, to be lost in the blue of the sky.
I have run and leaped with the rain, I have taken the wind to my breast.
My cheeks like a drowsy child to the face of the earth I have pressed.
Because I have loved life, I shall have no sorrow to die.

I have kissed young love on the lips, I have heard his song to the end,
I have struck my hand like a seal in the loyal hand of a friend.
I have known the peace of heaven, the comfort of work done well.
I have longed for death in the darkness and risen alive out of hell.
Because I have loved life, I shall have no sorrow to die.

I gave a share of my soul to the world, when and where my course is run.
I know that another shall finish the task I surely must leave undone.
I know that no flower, nor flint was in vain on the path I trod.
As one looks on a face through a window, through life I have looked on God,
Because I have loved life, I shall have no sorrow to die.

~ Amelia Burr

Funeral Poem: An Eternal Memory...Until We Meet Again

Those special memories of you
will always bring a smile
if only I could have you back
for just a little while
Then we could sit and talk again
just like we used to do
you always meant so very much
and always will do too.
The fact that you're no longer here
will always cause me pain
but you're forever in my heart
until we meet again.

Funeral Poem: The Soldier

If I should die, think only this of me:
That there's some corner of a foreign field
That is for ever England. There shall be
In that rich earth a richer dust conceal'd;
A dust whom England bore, shaped, made aware,
Gave, once, her flowers to love, her ways to roam,
A body of England's, breathing English air.
Wash'd by the rivers, blest by suns of home.
And think, this heart, all evil shed away,
A pulse in the eternal mind, no less
Gives somewhere back the thoughts by England given;
Her sights and sounds; dreams happy as her day;
And laughter, learnt of friends; and gentleness,
In hearts at peace, under an English heaven.

~ Rupert Brooke

Traditional Irish Funeral Poem

The Parting Glass

Oh all the time that e'er I spent,
I spent it in good company;
And any harm that e'er I've done,
I trust it was to none but me;
May those I've loved through all the years
Have memories now they'll e'er recall;
So fill me to the parting glass,
Goodnight, and joy be with you all.

Oh all the comrades that e'er I had,
Are sorry for my going away;
And all the loved ones that e'er I had
Would wish me one more day to stay.
But since it falls unto my lot
That I should leave and you should not,
I'll gently rise and I'll softly call
Goodnight, and joy be with you all.

Of all good times that e'er we shared,
I leave to you fond memory;
And for all the friendship that e'er we had
I ask you to remember me;
And when you sit and stories tell,
I'll be with you and help recall;
So fill to me the parting glass,
God bless, and joy be with you all.

Funeral Poem: You Never...

You never said I'm leaving
You never said goodbye
You were gone before I knew it,
And only God knew why
A million times I needed you,
A million times I cried
If Love alone could have saved you,
You never would have died
In Life I loved you dearly
In death I love you still
In my heart you hold a place,
That no one could ever fill
It broke my heart to lose you,
But you didn't go alone
For part of me went with you,
The day God took you home.

Remember When

Remember when you told me
That you'll always stay by my side
Remember when you told me
Big girls never cry.

Remember when you sang
A sweet song in my ear
Remember when you tucked me in
And always said a prayer.

Remember when you gave me
A gift I would always treasure
Remember when I held the doll tight
She would always make me feel better.

Remember when we smiled
It was a loving touch
Remember when I told you
That I loved you so much.

Remember when I prayed
Now as you lay in God's care forever
Remember when I told you
That we'll always be together.

~ Rachel Aye

Memorial Poem, Remember

Special people always will be,
Ingrained in our heart and memory.
Look through the tears, the sorrow, the pain,
Reflect on the thoughts you want to retain.

Remember the love, the warm embrace,
Remember the touch, the smiling face.
Remember the person so gentle and kind,
Who always was caring in action and mind.

Always remember, never forget,
People live in our heart,
And if you remember the person within,
Their spirit will never depart.

and for you, during this difficult time, a funeral prayer and poem, entitled

Funeral Prayer: Reaching Out

I feel your pain and long to touch the hurt
and make it melt away.
Yes, I know
That I can't really see the breadth
And depth
Of this dark valley you are in.
I can't truly know just how sharp the knife is
In your soul-
For it is you in its path, not me.
But I have known other valleys
And in my heart still bear knife-wound scars
Even so, I would walk your road and take your
pain if I could.
I cannot.
And yet, perhaps in some way
I can be a hand to hold in the darkness
In some way, try to blunt the sharpness of the pain
But if not - it may help a little
Just to know I care.

~ Christine Rigden

I especially love the words that speak of a "hand to hold in the darkness".

Losing A Child

One never wants to contemplate the agony of losing a child, but if the unthinkable should happen, then perhaps you could find some comfort in your time of need by reading this poem from your angel up above.

I'll Be There

Daddy, please don't look so sad
Mama please don't cry
Cause I am in the arms of Jesus
and He sings me lullabies.
Please try not to question God,
Don't think he is unkind
Don't think He sent me to you,
and then He changed His mind.
You see I am a special child,
and I'm needed up above
I'm the special gift you gave Him,
the product of your love.
I'll always be there with you
and watch the sky at night,
Find the brightest star that's gleaming,
That's my halo's brilliant light.
You'll see me in the morning frost,
that mists your window pane,
That's me in the summer showers,
I'll be dancing in the rain.
When you feel a little breeze,
from a gentle wind that blows
That's me I'll be there,
planting kisses on your nose.
When you see a child playing
and your heart feels a little tug
That's me I'll be there giving your heart a hug.
So Daddy, please don't look so sad, Mama don't you cry.
I'm in the arms of Jesus and He sings me lullabies

Please Don't Cry

Mummy please don't cry now.
For I must go to sleep.
I'll be beside you always.
To dry the tears you weep.
Daddy please be strong now.
It's time for me to rest.
The three of us together dad.
We fought, we did our best.
You took my fight to everyone.
The courts, the queen, the pope.
While still caring for your baby.
You never gave up hope.
And now the pain bears heavy.
As the time has come to part.
Though you no longer hold me in your arms.
I'll live on in your heart.
For the good Lord he has called me.
To sit there by his side.
Watching over both of you.
With never ending pride.
A last message to my army.
Please hold your loved ones tight.
For no one's time is promised.
Now I must say goodnight.
~ Anorahs Grant

My Angel Up In Heaven

My Angel up in Heaven,
I wanted you to know,
I feel you watching over me,
everywhere I go.
I wish you were with me,
but that can never be.
Memories of you in my heart,
that only I can see.
My Angel up in Heaven,
I hope you understand,
That I would give anything
if I could hold your hand.
I'd hold you oh so tightly,
and never let you go,
And all the love inside of me,
to you I would show.
My Angel up in Heaven,
for now we are apart,
You will always live inside of me
deep within my heart.

~ Dave Hedges

Funeral Directors

It's when we suffer tragic loss,
They help us bear the heavy cross.
Preserving loved ones in their rest,
They try to fill each last request.
Withing the valley's shadowed death,
They help us stop and catch our breath.
They offer comfort and relief
To cope with sadness, stress and grief.
From older folks to juveniles,
They walk us through many trials.
And as we share our sad goodbyes,
We see compassion in their eyes.
With hope and wisdom to impart,
They comfort each sad, broken heart.
They offer guidance through the day
And gently help us find our way.

~ Larry Howland

Dear Ancestor

"Your tombstone stands among the rest;
neglected and alone
The name and date are chiseled out
on polished, marbled stone
It reaches out to all who care
It is too late to mourn
You did not know that I’d exist
You died and I was born.
Yet each of us are cells of you
in flesh, in blood, in bone.
Our blood contracts and beats a pulse
entirely not our own.
Dear Ancestor, the place you filled
one hundred years ago
Spreads out among the ones you left
who would have loved you so.
I wonder if you lived and loved,
I wonder if you knew
That someday I would find this spot,
and come to visit you."

Poems About Death

Death is nothing at all.
I have only slipped away to the next room.
I am I and you are you.
Whatever we were to each other,
That, we still are.

Call me by my old familiar name.
Speak to me in the easy way
which you always used.
Put no difference into your tone.
Wear no forced air of solemnity or sorrow.

Laugh as we always laughed
at the little jokes we enjoyed together.
Play, smile, think of me. Pray for me.
Let my name be ever the household word
that it always was.
Let it be spoken without effect.
Without the trace of a shadow on it.

Life means all that it ever meant.
It is the same that it ever was.
There is absolute unbroken continuity.
Why should I be out of mind
because I am out of sight?

I am but waiting for you.
For an interval.
Somewhere. Very near.
Just around the corner.

All is well.

~ Henry Scott Holland

Those we hold closest in our hearts never truly leave us. They live on in the kindness they have shared and the love they brought into our lives.

If you are looking for a particular poem, (for example, the poem "Remember Me", please see below.

For more resources and also to find funeral handouts and funeral programs, ideas for funerals and eulogies, please visit Special Moments.

Click this link if you want to know how to write a Eulogy Speech to remember!

Please submit your favorite funeral poem or other helpful ideas to create loving memorials that you would like to see on this site.

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Blessings,

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funeral poems & eulogy poetry