Funerals can truly be augmented by a poem that is apt and fitting for the person you have just lost. The following list of funeral poems about radio are for those who spent their lives on the airwaves talking, or who loved to listen to the wireless.
First Radio
by Michael McFee
A plastic transistor from Japan,
aqua, with black vinyl straps, some chrome trim,
an ear-sized speaker, dials like nails–
perfect in the pocket as a pack of cigarettes,
its hidden heart pulsing over mine.
At lunch, at recess, on the bus,
each fall I’d strain to crack the glamorous code
of the World Series, pinching bright flags
of foil around the bent antenna,
hoping to attract Mantle or Koufax or Gibson.
And at night, planted under my pillow
like a tooth, like a magic seed,
I’d fall asleep to top-40 big-city dee-jays
bouncing off cloud cover thousands of miles away,
better than any answered prayer.
The Man With The Radios
by Wesley McNair
Beyond the curtainless
bay windows of his room
on the sidestreet,
he kneels
among old radios, left
from a time of belief
in radios,
some dangling fat
tails of cord
from end table, some
in darkening corners
sprouting hairs of wire
from their great backs,
and this strange one
he has chosen,
standing on the paws
of an African cat.
The man with the radios
is so far away
in his gaze you would swear
he hears nothing,
so still you might miss
how he concentrates
on not moving
his hand. Slowly,
slowly he turns
its ridged
knob in the dark,
listening for the soun
he has prepared it for,
watching with his absent eyes
the film that clears
from a green eye.
The Radio
by Agnes Lee
Farewell, belovèd tones, my flowers of life,
That chanted and enchanted, as I gave,
Sung by a golden-throated queen of France
(They say she hums your Orpheus in her sleep).
Farewell, belovèd tones; for I must slumber.
Where sounds are not. But I have had a vision–
That far in future years some eerie power
Shall pluck you out of the air and drop you down
Into the soul of art forevermore.
To access our full list of funeral poems, click here.
All poems featured on this website are free to use during any ceremony, although it is good practice to make sure the author is mentioned, if known. Should you require a celebrant for your ceremony, be it a funeral, a wedding, a naming ceremony or something else, feel free to get in touch. I am a double award-nominated Family and Funeral Celebrant covering the entire UK, and would be happy to help you commemorate in a meaningful and personal way.
