Turning To Poetry For Grief
Posted on 5th July 2022 at 17:26
Using poetry when you are grieving is a healthy way to deal with the loss of someone special. It is important to express your grief as part of your healing.
Poetry can perhaps bring you some comfort, be uplifting and help you to remember the person and their life. It can help you to come to terms with your loss, remind you of the love you had and bring you hope. It is for these reasons that I recommend use of poetry at someone’s funeral.
So much can be conveyed in a poem in so few words. When I suggest to people that they may like to include a poem in a ceremony, quite often it is something that they hadn’t considered, but afterwards they say how much it has helped them with their feelings. There are many poems available but it is important to spend some time to find the right one.
There are many traditional well known poems used for funerals, but here are a selection of some of the alternative poems that I have used in my ceremonies (I hope they help you now)
A Star
A light went out on Earth for me
The day we said goodbye
And on that day a star was born,
The brightest in the sky
Reaching through the darkness
With its rays of purest white
Lighting up the Heavens
As it once lit up my life
With beams of love to heal
The broken heart you left behind
Where always in my memory
Your lovely star will shine
- Catherine Turner
Special Memories
Those special memories of you, will always bring a smile....
If only I could have back just for a while.....
Then we could sit, talk & laugh again just like we used to do...
You always meant so very much to me and you always will do too...
The fact that you are no longer here, will always cause me pain!
But you will always be in my heart, deep, until we meet again
- Anon
Into A Brighter Day
There is no night without a dawning
No winter without a spring
And beyond the dark horizon
Our hearts will once more sing ….
For those who leave us for a while
Have only gone away
Out of a restless, care worn world
Into a brighter day
- Helen Steiner Rice
Last Journey
There is a train at the station with a seat reserved just for me
I’m excited about its destination as I’ve heard it sets you free
The trials and tribulations, the pain and stress we breathe
Don’t exist where I am going, only happiness I believe
I hope that you will be there, to wish me on my way
It’s not a journey you can join in, it’s not your time today
There’ll be many destinations, some are happy, some are sad
Each one a brief reminder, of the great times that we’ve had
Many friends I know are waiting, who took an earlier train
To greet and reassure me, that nothing has really changed
We’ll take the time together, to catch up on the past
To build a new beginning, one that will always last
One day you’ll take your journey, on the train just like me
And i promise that I’ll be there at the station and you will see
That Life is just a journey enriched by those you meet
No one can take that from you, it’s always yours to keep’
But now as no seat is vacant, you will have to muddle through
Make sure you fulfill your ambitions, as you know I’ll be watching you
- Timothy Coote
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