Marion Kingston Stocking

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.

By Christina Rossetti
The Poetry Foundation

Marion was famous at Beloit College among those of us lucky enough to meet her. I spent a day at her home talking about poetry (and the Beloit Poetry Journal she edited for years) and eating her famous blueberry pie. Her company was as contagious as her button--she was enthusiastic about life in all its variety. I wish to this day that all Beloit students could have spent a day with her, as she was a wise, poetically inspired individual who enjoyed people and made things happen wherever she went. Her liberal arts tradition lives on in the hearts of those she mentored--and there are many of us.

Thanks, Marion!