Funeral poems for a service or program

"Funeral Blues", also known by its first line "Stop all the clocks", is a poem by W. H. Auden, made famous by the film Four Weddings and a Funeral. It captures the way grief makes the whole world feel like it should stop.

The poem is still under copyright, so we do not reproduce it here. You can find the full text in Auden's collected poems or read it aloud from a properly licensed source. It works beautifully as a reading for a spouse or partner, given its theme of losing the one person who was "my North, my South, my East and West".

If you want something you can print freely, use one of the original or public-domain verses below instead.

These short verses were written for this page and are free for you to use, adapt or print.

For a parent You taught us how to stand and how to give, and in each kindness shown, you still will live. We close our eyes and there you are again - not gone from us, just gone ahead, till then.

For anyone Do not measure love by years alone, but by the warmth that filled this home. The body rests, the laughter stays; we keep you in our ordinary days.

A short blessing Go gently now, your work is done, rest in the shade you walked us from. We carry you in all we do - goodbye for now, we'll follow soon too.

Feel free to change names, pronouns or lines to fit your family.

These poems are old enough to be out of copyright, so you may print them in full:

• "Crossing the Bar" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson - a calm, seafaring image of death as setting sail. Gentle and dignified.
• "Remember" by Christina Rossetti - begins "Remember me when I am gone away". Tender and often used for a partner.
• Psalm 23 ("The Lord is my shepherd") - the most-read passage at South African funerals; technically scripture rather than a poem, but read like one.
• "Death is Nothing at All" by Henry Scott Holland - a prose-poem of reassurance, very widely used.

You can find the full text of these freely online or in most poetry anthologies.

Families often search specifically for a poem for a mother or father. The original verses above marked "for a parent" work for either. A few more pointers:

• For a mom - poems about home, hands, cooking, and unconditional love land well. The "for a parent" verse above suits a mother closely.
• For a dad - poems about steadiness, teaching, work and quiet strength fit. Tennyson's "Crossing the Bar" suits a father who loved the outdoors or the sea.

Whatever you choose, read it aloud first. A poem that reads smoothly on the page can stumble when spoken, and the opposite is also true.