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Poem: “When I am Dead, my Dearest”

by on Apr 18, 2012 in Poetry
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When I am Dead, my Dearest

When I am dead, my dearest,
         Sing no sad songs for me;
Plant thou no roses at my head,
         Nor shady cypress tree:
Be the green grass above me
         With showers and dewdrops wet;
And if thou wilt, remember,
         And if thou wilt, forget.

I shall not see the shadows,
         I shall not feel the rain;
I shall not hear the nightingale
         Sing on, as if in pain:
And dreaming through the twilight
         That doth not rise nor set,
Haply I may remember,
         And haply may forget

Christina Rossetti


Christina was born in London, England in 1830. Though she suffered poor health and had bouts with Graves’ disease, which ended her work as a governess and restricted her social life, she continued to write poems. She developed cancer and died in London on December 29, 1894. Her poetry is marked by symbolism and intense feeling. She is best known for her ballads and her mystic religious lyrics. She is considered a major Victorian poet.