Ask someone who has lost a loved one what the pain of loss feels like — someone who no longer has anyone of their own left in this world. I don't think there's any sorrow greater than losing someone close, but the harsh truth of life is that everyone has to leave this world one day — whether it's someone's father, mother, grandparents, brother, or sister. That's why we should spend as much time as we can with our loved ones.
The grief of losing someone cannot be healed by any medicine in the world, but even then, we should have compassion for those who have lost someone close to them. To help ease your sorrow a little, we've brought you a collection of sweet and emotional 25 Short Poems About the Death of a Loved One that may provide some comfort during such a difficult time.
1. "Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep" – Mary Elizabeth Frye
Do not stand at my grave and weep,
I am not there, I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow,
I am the diamond glints on snow,
I am the sunlight on ripened grain,
I am the gentle autumn rain.
2. "Remember" – Christina Rossetti
Remember me when I am gone away,
Gone far away into the silent land;
When you can no more hold me by the hand,
Nor I half turn to go yet turning stay.
Remember me when no more day by day
You tell me of our future that you planned.
3. "Funeral Blues" – W.H. Auden
Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone,
Silence the pianos and with muffled drum
Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come.
Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead
Scribbling on the sky the message He Is Dead.
4. "If I Should Go Tomorrow" – Anonymous
If I should go tomorrow
It would never be goodbye,
For I have left my heart with you,
So don't you ever cry.
The love that's deep within me,
Shall reach you from the stars,
You'll feel it from the heavens,
And it will heal the scars.
5. "Gone From My Sight" – Henry Van Dyke
I am standing upon the seashore.
A ship at my side spreads her white sails to the morning breeze
and starts for the blue ocean.
She is an object of beauty and strength,
and I stand and watch until at last she hangs
like a speck of white cloud just where the sea and sky come down to mingle with each other.
6. "The Broken Chain" – Ron Tranmer
We little knew that morning
God was going to call your name.
In life we loved you dearly,
In death we do the same.
It broke our hearts to lose you,
But you didn't go alone,
For part of us went with you
The day God called you home.
7. "She Is Gone" – David Harkins
You can shed tears that she is gone,
Or you can smile because she has lived.
You can close your eyes and pray that she'll come back,
Or you can open your eyes and see all she's left.
Your heart can be empty because you can't see her,
Or you can be full of the love you shared.
8. "Afterglow" – Helen Lowrie Marshall
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.
9. "Miss Me, But Let Me Go" – Anonymous
When I come to the end of the road
And the sun has set for 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.
10. "To Those Whom I Love & Those Who Love Me" – Anonymous
When I am gone, release me, let me go—
I have so many things to see and do.
You mustn't tie yourself to me with tears,
Be happy that we had so many years.
I gave you my love, you can only guess
How much you gave to me in happiness.
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11. "The Final Flight" – Anonymous
Don't grieve for me, for now I'm free,
I'm following the path God laid for me.
I took His hand when I heard Him call,
I turned my back and left it all.
I could not stay another day,
To laugh, to love, to work or play.
12. "I'm Free" – Anonymous
My life's been full, I savored much,
Good friends, good times, a loved one's touch.
Perhaps my time seemed all too brief—
Don't lengthen it now with undue grief.
Lift up your heart and share with me,
God wanted me now; He set me free.
13. "A Song of Living" – Amelia Josephine Burr
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 cheek like a drowsy child to the face of the earth I have pressed.
14. "The Parting Glass" – Traditional Irish Poem
Of all the money that e'er I spent,
I spent it in good company.
And all the harm that e'er I've done,
Alas, it was to none but me.
And all I've done for want of wit,
To memory now I can't recall,
So fill to me the parting glass,
Goodnight and joy be with you all.
15. "Crossing the Bar" – Alfred, Lord Tennyson
Sunset and evening star,
And one clear call for me!
And may there be no moaning of the bar,
When I put out to sea,
But such a tide as moving seems asleep,
Too full for sound and foam,
When that which drew from out the boundless deep
Turns again home.
16. "When I Must Leave You" – Helen Steiner Rice
When I must leave you for a little while,
Please do not grieve and shed wild tears,
And hug your sorrow to you through the years,
But start out bravely with a gallant smile;
And for my sake and in my name,
Live on and do all things the same.
17. "We Remember Them" – Sylvan Kamens & Rabbi Jack Riemer
At the rising of the sun and at its going down,
We remember them.
At the blowing of the wind and in the chill of winter,
We remember them.
At the opening of the buds and in the rebirth of spring,
We remember them.
18. "The Life That I Have" – Leo Marks
The life that I have
Is all that I have
And the life that I have
Is yours.
The love that I have
Of the life that I have
Is yours and yours and yours.
19. "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night" – Dylan Thomas
Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.
20. "Epitaph" – Merrit Malloy
When I die
Give what's left of me away
To children
And old men that wait to die.
And if you need to cry,
Cry for your brother
Walking the street beside you.
21. "I Am Not There" – Anonymous
I did not die.
Do not stand at my grave and cry.
I am not there—I did not die.
22. "The Tide Recedes" – Lillian E. Curtis
The tide recedes but leaves behind
Bright seashells on the sand.
The sun goes down, but gentle warmth
Still lingers on the land.
The music stops, and yet it echoes on
In sweet refrains.
23. "To Sleep" – John Keats
O soft embalmer of the still midnight!
Shutting, with careful fingers and benign,
Our gloom-pleased eyes, embowered from the light,
Enshaded in forgetfulness divine;
O soothest Sleep! if so it please thee, close,
In midst of this thine hymn, my willing eyes.
24. "Requiem" – Robert Louis Stevenson
Under the wide and starry sky,
Dig the grave and let me lie.
Glad did I live and gladly die,
And I laid me down with a will.
This be the verse you grave for me:
Here he lies where he longed to be.
25. "The End" – A.E. Housman
Here dead we lie because we did not choose
To live and shame the land from which we sprung.
Life, to be sure, is nothing much to lose;
But young men think it is, and we were young.
🌟 Final Thoughts
These 25 short poems about losing a loved one offer comfort in grief and celebrate enduring love. From Mary Elizabeth Frye's immortal "Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep" to Dylan Thomas's passionate "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night," these verses remind us that love transcends death and that memories keep our departed close to our hearts.
Poetry has the unique power to express what our hearts cannot put into words during times of loss. These timeless verses from renowned poets and anonymous writers alike offer solace, hope, and a sense of connection to something greater than our immediate pain.
Whether you're mourning a recent loss or remembering someone who passed long ago, these poems serve as gentle reminders that grief is the price we pay for love, and that our departed loved ones live on in the beautiful memories they've left behind.
Which poem speaks most deeply to your heart? Share your thoughts in the comments below! ❤️
Want to explore more inspiring poetry? Check out our AI Poem Generator to create your own verses of comfort and remembrance.
