I was performing a concert of my songs and poems at St Michael-on-Greenhill Church in Lichfield, and had some time beforehand to wander around the stunning Churchyard there. I wrote this poem while I was there and read it at the concert that evening.
Stones rise unsteadily from teeming ground,
the order that they used to give long gone
replaced by flowing jubilant growth, profound
reminders that even in death, life goes on.
Their slate-hewn epitaphs hold hints of those
who walked before us on this hallowed hill,
What hidden wisdom lies within these rows?
What might their stories long to teach us still?
St Michael, so the ancient stories tell,
stands guard over the faithful at their end.
Now Ash, Birch, Hawthorn, Bramble join as well
the company of angels, watchful friends.
And we, upon this life-filled ground tonight
Are bathed with them in heaven’s unseen light
(c) Rich Clarkson, August 2024
Rich Clarkson Poetry 
Beautiful, gentle rhythms to reflect the theme of everlasting life and the natural order of things, interwoven in “jubilant growth” and ” hidden wisdom” presided over by St Michael and the angels.
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Thanks very much Io
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