"Do not stand at my grave and weep ..."
So begins one of the most popular poems to quote when giving a eulogy at a funeral. This opening line is from a short poem by Mary Elizabeth Frye. The full poem is as follows:
Do not stand at my grave and weep,
I am not there, I do not sleep.
I am in a thousand winds that blow,
I am the softly falling snow.
I am the gentle showers of rain,
I am the fields of ripening grain.
I am in the morning hush,
I am in the graceful rush
Of beautiful birds in circling flight,
I am the starshine of the night.
I am in the flowers that bloom,
I am in a quiet room.
I am in the birds that sing,
I am in each lovely thing.
Do not stand at my grave and cry,
I am not there. I do not die.
This, according to Wikipedia, is the original version. There are some other variations, but I think the original withstands the efforts of others to improve upon it.
If you find yourself having to give a funeral speech, this is a poem you may have remembered and feel you could use. It isn't the only one. Popular and appropriate as it is, there are many fine words that have been written over the years to express the feelings of grief that accompany giving a eulogy speech or funeral oration. An excellent resource you can download right now is the collection of 250 of the world's best funeral poems, quotations and readings illustrated on the right.
Funerals happen unexpectedly, and often give you little time to prepare for giving a eulogy. Download this great resource right now, and you can start right away preparing what you will say.
Click here to get your copy now.
It's fully indexed, and features 180 authors over 160 pages, and pages can easily be printed out to take with you and read at the right moment. There is no need to feel lost for words when you want to bring comfort to those in grief.
