Full-stop (period) instead of semi-colon after 'I am not there' in final line. Note especially the extra four lines (11-14), and the present tense 'do' in the final line. Geoff Stephens (mentioned above) produced and recorded a song version of Do Not Stand by My Grave and Weep, which he re-titled To All My Loved Ones. The poem in the memorial document is not titled, which is consistent with many other 'official' and historical renderings of the poem, but it contains only eleven lines, not twelve, omitting the line "I am the soft stars that shine at night," (or similar equivalent) which appears in many other 'official' versions, including the famous 'Schwarzkopf printed card version', and the Portsmouth Herald version below. I am a thousand winds that blow, I am the diamond glints on snow, I am the sun on ripened grain, I am the gentle autumn rain.
In her interview with Kelly Ryan broadcast on CBC Radio in 2000, Mary Frye confirmed the following interpretation as her original version. According to Mary Frye's recollections she took just a few minutes to write the poem moreover she worked purely from instinct - she did not regard herself as a writer or poet in even the remotest sense. The document is nevertheless highly significant, being the earliest (that I am aware of) published version of the poem Do not Stand at My Grave and Weep. Jamie Paxton has a folky arrangement on his album 'Remember' Sue Anne Pinner does it in yet another arrangement on the album 'Illumination' very new age. ( Log Out / This is an extract of the translation into English by Robert Graves, from his book 'The White Goddess': Robert Graves' translation is commonly known as The Song of Amergin. The film is based on the Hans Christian Andersen fairytale of the same name, and the earlier 2003 musical score by Paul Joyce. I am grateful to P Smith for sending it to me and also for helping me with related information (end 2012-early 2013). She has always enjoyed writing, reading, and analysing literature. Mary Elizabeth Frye (1905-2004) was a housewife from Baltimore USA. However until and unless better different evidence appears, the Mary Frye claim is the strongest. When a friend's mother died this apparently prompted Mary Frye to compose the verse, which in various forms has for decades now touched and comforted many thousands of people, especially at times of loss and bereavement. When we stand at the grave of the one we love, we want to believe Mary.Īfter logging in you can close it and return to this page. Useful clues and guidance as to appropriate attribution might be found by looking at how other publishers have attributed the work in their track-listings and publishing notes. The trail is even less clear when it comes to finding Peter Ackroyd's book about his search for the author, which is mentioned in the broadcast, but seems impossible to locate. I am in the flowers that bloom, I am in a quiet room. For many years (and presently still among many people) the poem's origin was generally unknown, being variously attributed to native American Indians (especially Navajo), traditional folklore, and other particular claimant writers.