Farewell/goodbye Poems, Anybody?

[Pensive]

Does anybody have any ideas for a goodbye poem?

[Pryderi Agni]

In

this extraordinary world,

With

this extraordinary girl,

-Surely, surely I’d die.

She

is this ball of fire,

Walking the world with herself.

-Surely she has to be mine.

She

doesn’t know, though:

Cancer

has claimed her before me.

-Surely, she will die.

Marriage,

she says to me,

Works

if love exists.

-Love? For her, God I’ll defy.

But she

holds my hands,

Chaining

me to her post.

-I can’t believe we’ll survive.

Turning

many unturned stones,

Leafing

up the sore spots.

-’You didn’t have to lie.’

Still

she lay on her bed

Died

on the 3rd Sunday of June

-A life gone horribly awry.

Now

on the beaches of some sea

As

the sun sets on mankind

-Where the horizon passes idly by.

I see

Her good little girls

And

her good little boys

-Waving goodbye.

Goodbye!


My personal work, so no distro without permo!

[Sapphire]

With Leonard Cohen it's never sure where the distinction between song and poem lies... Therefore I'd like to mention:

Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye

I loved you in the morning, our kisses deep and warm,
your hair upon the pillow like a sleepy golden storm,
yes, many loved before us, I know that we are not new,
in city and in forest they smiled like me and you,
but now it's come to distances and both of us must try,
your eyes are soft with sorrow,
Hey, that's no way to say goodbye.
I'm not looking for another as I wander in my time,
walk me to the corner, our steps will always rhyme
you know my love goes with you as your love stays with me,
it's just the way it changes, like the shoreline and the sea,

but let's not talk of love or chains and things we can't
untie,
your eyes are soft with sorrow,
Hey, that's no way to say goodbye.
I loved you in the morning, our kisses deep and warm,
your hair upon the pillow like a sleepy golden storm,
yes many loved before us, I know that we are not new,
in city and in forest they smiled like me and you,
but let's not talk of love or chains and things we can't
untie,
your eyes are soft with sorrow,
Hey, that's no way to say goodbye

And then there is of course this one by Spike Milligan

Goodbye

Go away girl, go away
and let me pack my dreams
Now where did I put those yesteryears
made up with broken seams
Where shall I sweep the pieces
my God they still look new
There's a taxi waiting at the door
but there's only room for you

I like that last one a lot :) Nice and short and full of meaning (yet not that hard to grasp) ;)

[Scheherazade]

This is not exactly a farewell poem but still one in some ways (and one of my favorites):

We'll go no more a-roving

SO, we'll go no more a-roving
So late into the night,
Though the heart be still as loving,
And the moon be still as bright.

For the sword outwears its sheath,
And the soul wears out the breast,
And the heart must pause to breathe,
And love itself have rest.

Though the night was made for loving,
And the day returns too soon,
Yet we'll go no more a-roving
By the light of the moon.

[PoeticPassions]

Farewell

Farewell to thee! but not farewell
To all my fondest thoughts of thee:
Within my heart they still shall dwell;
And they shall cheer and comfort me.
O, beautiful, and full of grace!
If thou hadst never met mine eye,
I had not dreamed a living face
Could fancied charms so far outvie.

If I may ne'er behold again
That form and face so dear to me,
Nor hear thy voice, still would I fain
Preserve, for aye, their memory.

That voice, the magic of whose tone
Can wake an echo in my breast,
Creating feelings that, alone,
Can make my tranced spirit blest.

That laughing eye, whose sunny beam
My memory would not cherish less; --
And oh, that smile! whose joyous gleam
Nor mortal language can express.

Adieu, but let me cherish, still,
The hope with which I cannot part.
Contempt may wound, and coldness chill,
But still it lingers in my heart.

And who can tell but Heaven, at last,
May answer all my thousand prayers,
And bid the future pay the past
With joy for anguish, smiles for tears?

Anne Bronte


THERE IS ALSO COLERIDGE'S "THE NIGHTINGALE"...IT IS SORT OF A FAREWELL SONG. KIND OF LONG SO I DID NOT WANT TO PASTE IT HERE.

[Virgil]

How's this Pensy:


Sonnet LXXXVII
by William Shakespeare


Farewell! thou art too dear for my possessing,
And like enough thou knowst thy estimate.
The Charter of thy worth gives thee releasing;
My bonds in thee are all determinate.
For how do I hold thee but by thy granting,
And for that riches where is my deserving?
The cause of this fair gift in me is wanting,
And so my patent back again is swerving.
Thy self thou gav’st, thy own worth then not knowing,
Or me, to whom thou gav’st is, else mistaking,
So thy great gift, upon misprision growing,
Comes home again, on better judgement making.
Thus have I had thee as a dream doth flatter:
In sleep a king, but waking no such matter.

[quasimodo1]

TO A HIGHLAND GIRL


(At Inversneyde, upon Loch Lomond)


Sweet Highland Girl, a very shower
Of beauty is thy earthly dower!
Twice seven consenting years have shed
Their utmost bounty on thy head:
And these grey rocks; that household lawn;
Those trees, a veil just half withdrawn;
This fall of water that doth make
A murmur near the silent lake;
This little bay; a quiet road
That holds in shelter thy Abode—
In truth together do ye seem
Like something fashioned in a dream;
Such Forms as from their covert peep
When earthly cares are laid asleep!
But, O fair Creature! in the light
Of common day, so heavenly bright,
I bless Thee, Vision as thou art,
I bless thee with a human heart;
God shield thee to thy latest years!
Thee, neither know I, nor thy peers;
And yet my eyes are filled with tears.


With earnest feeling I shall pray
For thee when I am far away:
For never saw I mien, or face,
In which more plainly I could trace
Benignity and home-bred sense
Ripening in perfect innocence.
Here scattered, like a random seed,
Remote from men, Thou dost not need
The embarrassed look of shy distress,
And maidenly shamefacedness:
Thou wear'st upon thy forehead clear
The freedom of a Mountaineer:
A face with gladness overspread!
Soft smiles, by human kindness bred!
And seemliness complete, that sways
Thy courtesies, about thee plays;
With no restraint, but such as springs
From quick and eager visitings
Of thoughts that lie beyond the reach
Of thy few words of English speech:
A bondage sweetly brooked, a strife
That gives thy gestures grace and life!
So have I, not unmoved in mind,
Seen birds of tempest-loving kind—
Thus beating up against the wind. ........

[Pensive]

Thanks for the participation, guys! Even though none of the following exactly fits the criteria the poem I am looking for fits upon, nevertheless, it's always a pleasure to entertain one's self with such good pieces of poetry! :)


This is not exactly a farewell poem but still one in some ways (and one of my favorites):

We'll go no more a-roving

SO, we'll go no more a-roving
So late into the night,
Though the heart be still as loving,
And the moon be still as bright.

For the sword outwears its sheath,
And the soul wears out the breast,
And the heart must pause to breathe,
And love itself have rest.

Though the night was made for loving,
And the day returns too soon,
Yet we'll go no more a-roving
By the light of the moon.

'We will go no more a-rooving' and 'She Walks in Beauty' are two of my favourites by Lord Byron! :)

Oh and here is my favourite farewell poem that I would like to share (though unfortunately it isn't the poem I require either):


Ae fond kiss, and then we sever;
Ae fareweel, alas, for ever!
Deep in heart-wrung tears I'll pledge thee,
Warring sighs and groans I'll wage thee.
Who shall say that Fortune grieves him,
While the star of hope she leaves him?
Me, nae cheerful twinkle lights me;
Dark despair around benights me.

I'll ne'er blame my partial fancy,
Naething could resist my Nancy:
But to see her was to love her;
Love but her, and love for ever.
Had we never lov'd sae kindly,
Had we never lov'd sae blindly,
Never met-or never parted,
We had ne'er been broken-hearted.

Fare-thee-weel, thou first and fairest!
Fare-thee-weel, thou best and dearest!
Thine be ilka joy and treasure,
Peace, Enjoyment, Love and Pleasure!
Ae fond kiss, and then we sever!
Ae fareweeli alas, for ever!
Deep in heart-wrung tears I'll pledge thee,
Warring sighs and groans I'll wage thee.

[sofia82]

My Heart's In The Highlands

Farewell to the Highlands, farewell to the North,
The birth-place of Valour, the country of Worth;
Wherever I wander, wherever I rove,
The hills of the Highlands for ever I love.

My heart's in the Highlands, my heart is not here;
My heart's in the Highlands a-chasing the deer;
A-chasing the wild-deer, and following the roe,
My heart's in the Highlands wherever I go.

Farewell to the mountains high covered with snow;
Farewell to the straths and green valleys below;
Farewell to the forests and wild-hanging woods;
Farewell to the torrents and loud-pouring floods.

My heart's in the Highlands, my heart is not here;
My heart's in the Highlands a-chasing the deer;
A-chasing the wild-deer, and following the roe,
My heart's in the Highlands wherever I go.

Robert Burns

[Sapphire]

This is not really a goodbye poem, but it has the longing to say goodbye ...

I Have Longed to Move Away - Dylan Thomas

I have longed to move away
From the hissing of the spent lie
And the old terrors' continual cry
Growing more terrible as the day
Goes over the hill into the deep sea;
I have longed to move away
From the repetition of salutes,
For there are ghosts in the air
And ghostly echoes on paper,
And the thunder of calls and notes.

I have longed to move away but am afraid;
Some life, yet unspent, might explode
Out of the old lie burning on the ground,
And, crackling into the air, leave me half-blind.
Neither by night's ancient fear,
The parting of hat from hair,
Pursed lips at the receiver,
Shall I fall to death's feather.
By these I would not care to die,
Half convention and half lie.

Another one that is quite sad:

The Farewell - Edward Field

They say the ice will hold
so there I go,
forced to believe them by my act of trusting people,
stepping out on it,

and naturally it gaps open
and I, forced to carry on coolly
by my act of being imperturbable,
slide erectly into the water wearing my captain's helmet,
waving to the shore with a sad smile,
"Goodbye my darlings, goodbye dear one,"
as the ice meets again over my head with a click.

[Pryderi Agni]

Here's something from a newer poet:

Farewell

Farewell is a word,
So simple, so dour
Saying what started
but did not endure.
Farewell is a feeling
of something that’s gone
Farewell is a memory
that stays for too long
Farewell is everything
that’s been left unsaid
Farewell is the greeting
of someone
who’s dead.

Peter Rhodes

[JBI]

Darn someone posted Byron's so we'll go no more a roving.

ALBA

from "Langue d'Oc"

When the nightingale to his mate
Sings day-long and night late
My love and I keep state
In bower,
In flower,
'Till the watchman on the tower
Cry:
"Up! Thou rascal, Rise,
I see the white
Light
And the night
Flies."

Translated by Ezra Pound

[blp]

Can't resist a mention for Private Eye magazine's standard obit poem opener, And so farewell then, probably invented by Peter Cook, ascribed to EJ Thribb, aged 17 and a half. Here's a sample:

In Memoriam
HOWARD HUGHES

So. Farewell then
Howard Hughes
Mystery millionaire.

It would seem that
You are dead

But are you?

We have been
Hoaxed before

So why not now?

But then. Does
Anyone really die?

This is the enigma.

It's a song, but it's pretty good as poetry:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T86tKSEdLpQ&feature=related

So Long Marianne
Leonard Cohen

Come over to the window, my little darling,
Id like to try to read you palm
I used to think I was some kind of gypsy boy
Before I let you take me home.

Chorus: so long marianne, its time that we began
To laugh and cry and cry and laugh about it all again

Well, you know that I love to live with you,
But you make me forget so very much
I forget to pray for the angel
And then the angels forget to pray for us.

so long marianne, its time that we began
To laugh and cry and cry and laugh about it all again

We met when we were almost young
Deep in the green lilac park
You held on to me like I was a crucifix
As we went kneeling through the dark.

so long marianne, its time that we began
To laugh and cry and cry and laugh about it all again

Your letters say that you are beside me now
Then why do I feel alone?
Im standing on a ledge and your fine spider web
Is fastening my ankle to a stone.

so long marianne, its time that we began
To laugh and cry and cry and laugh about it all again

For now I need your hidden love
Im cold as a new razor blade
You left when I told you I was curious
I never said that I was brave.

so long marianne, its time that we began
To laugh and cry and cry and laugh about it all again

O you are really such a pretty one
I see youve gone and changed your name again
And just when I climbed this whole mountainside
To wash my eyelids in the rain.

so long marianne, its time that we began
To laugh and cry and cry and laugh about it all again

[Scheherazade]

Darn someone posted Byron's so we'll go no more a roving.

Why "darn"?


(though unfortunately it isn't the poem I require either):Why not? Is there a particular poem you are after or a specific type maybe?

[Isagel]

Trying to find some fitting things, from the archive of my mind, and the depths of my bookshelf ( with assistance from google, since I won´t type it all myself)

Do you want a poem about the writer leaving someone, or someone leaving the writer, or ja poem about endings, or perhaps something that says you never really part? What feeling would you like it to show? Here are three, but I can always get more. We shall find the one poem that will fit :-)


For the writer leaving

Song: Sweetest love, I do not go
by John Donne

Sweetest love, I do not go,
For weariness of thee,
Nor in hope the world can show
A fitter love for me;
But since that I
Must die at last, 'tis best
To use myself in jest
Thus by feign'd deaths to die.

Yesternight the sun went hence,
And yet is here today;
He hath no desire nor sense,
Nor half so short a way:
Then fear not me,
But believe that I shall make
Speedier journeys, since I take
More wings and spurs than he.

O how feeble is man's power,
That if good fortune fall,
Cannot add another hour,
Nor a lost hour recall!
But come bad chance,
And we join to'it our strength,
And we teach it art and length,
Itself o'er us to'advance.

When thou sigh'st, thou sigh'st not wind,
But sigh'st my soul away;
When thou weep'st, unkindly kind,
My life's blood doth decay.
It cannot be
That thou lov'st me, as thou say'st,
If in thine my life thou waste,
That art the best of me.

Let not thy divining heart
Forethink me any ill;
Destiny may take thy part,
And may thy fears fulfil;
But think that we
Are but turn'd aside to sleep;
They who one another keep
Alive, ne'er parted be.


Things ending - poem

Nothing Gold Can Stay
by Robert Frost

Nature's first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leafs a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.


and just a small favorite, that can be used to show that no matter what we are together:

i carry your heart with me by E. E. Cummings

i carry your heart with me(i carry it in
my heart)i am never without it(anywhere
i go you go,my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing,my darling)
i fear
no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)i want
no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart)

[Pensive]

Why not? Is there a particular poem you are after or a specific type maybe?



Do you want a poem about the writer leaving someone, or someone leaving the writer, or ja poem about endings, or perhaps something that says you never really part? What feeling would you like it to show? Here are three, but I can always get more. We shall find the one poem that will fit :-)

Something in the lines of 'I have tried so hard to make you understand how much I care for you but apparently I have failed and there is only one option left that is a goodbye' or 'I can't be ignored any longer'.

It can be anything, romantic or just about some friendship where one person doesn't realise the sincerity his friend has in his heart for him which leads to the sincere friend (or the narrator) demanding separation.

Oh and I know it's very specific, but if you can get to find anything like this, it would be really nice! :)

[Isagel]

Hmm.... I´ll have to think about this. But will be back.

[Sapphire]

There have been so many songs about this... there should be at least one poem out there that is fitted. I will keep an eye out.

[Zeruiah]

Taking Leave of a Friend

Blue mountains to the north of the walls,
White river winding about them;
Here we must make separation
And go out through a thousand miles of dead grass.

Mind like a floating white cloud,
Sunset like the parting of old acquiantances
Who bow over their clasped hands at a distance.
Our horses neigh to each other

as we are departing.


Rihaku

-Ezra Pound

[JBI]

I would bust out by broken up copy of The Poems From Jade Mountain (a very influential 1929 Chinese translation), and my translation of The Ten Thousand Leaves, since I think the Japanese and Chinese traditions have stronger poems of departure, but I think one really needs to read them in greater context.