How To Write A Poem For A Funeral
Writing a personal poem for a funeral eulogy is something that can really make your speech special. Adding personal experiences, memorable stories, or personal traits into a poem is a lot of effort but will be rewarded if worded correctly.
Poems to Say Goodbye at a Funeral
Writing or just reading a poem for a eulogy is a popular way to say goodbye at a funeral. Many a poem has been written with lovely words for a number of occasions, so as well as providing this guide to help you write your own, we have also created an extensive list of some of the most popular funeral poems chosen.
Get a Personalised Poem from a Professional Poet
How to Write an Original Funeral Poem
Write! Everything!
Sit down with a pencil and a piece of paper and write everything you are thinking, everything you are feeling. Think about the person, their mannerisms, their personality. Their family. Any experiences you can remember. Anything that comes to mind when you think of this person. Why were they loved. Why will they be missed. Single words sent aces. Get everything down on a piece of paper so you can start to pick out words later on when it comes to forming your poem.
Think of a Theme
The next step is to think about a theme for the poem. What characteristics did the person possess? Were they funny, then maybe a funny poem would be suitable? Do you want to reflect on their life, about death in general? The family?
Picking an overarching theme will help you bring the poem together and think of topics that fit the theme.
Rhyming & Structure
Most people think of a poem as something that rhymes. Whilst this isn’t always true, most people will want their poem to rhyme. When you think about structuring the poem, an easy way to tackle this is to lay it out as the last line of every other sentence as a rhyme. We have copied an original poem below that has been written with a grandfather in mind. (feel free to use this if you wish)
Just a card at birthday time reminds you of his love
Just his presence, by your side, his shelter like a glove
Just a smile and all is well, troubles fade and go
Just a chat with words you trust, solutions start to flow
Just at hand, perpetually ready, seems he’s always been around
Just in case of need or crisis, feet firmly planted on the ground
Just bestowing calm and stillness, tranquillity aligned
Just composed, extending guidance, compassionate and kind
this is where step 1 will come in handy. Grab some of the stand out words that you have written down and try to think of words that rhyme with them.
Taking the example above, there are some obvious words that can fit into a funeral poem like Love, Go & Kind.
There might also be some more personal words, this is where your poem will really bring the magic so try to think of ways to incperate them.
Hiring a Writer to Help Write a Funeral Poem
We work with a number of writers and would be happy to help come up with an original poem for your funeral service. We have added a couple of samples below to gauge our writing. If you would like us to help you create a special poem, please email Help@funeralinspirations.co.uk and we would be happy to help.
www.celebrationoflifepoems.co.uk & www.funeral-poetry.co.uk will help write any number of funeral poems that are totally unique, a personal poem just for you – prices start from £50.