Funeral reading
There Will Be Rest
Sara Teasdale
“There Will Be Rest” by Sara Teasdale is a poem read at a funeral or memorial service. It takes about 25 seconds read aloud, usually by the officiant. It is still in copyright, so the words are not reprinted here — the reader brings a printed copy.
Why the words are not printed here
Later than the rest of her work — it was published after she died, in 1933, so unlike her earlier poems it is very likely still in copyright and we do not reprint it. It is eight lines; print it from any Teasdale collection and have the reader bring it up with them.
Pieces still in copyright are listed by title and author only — we name them and tell you where to get them, but we do not reproduce the words. Public-domain text is printed in your script in full.
What it is about
Very quiet and very short. Bring a printed copy — the words are not in your script.
Read at a funeral or memorial service. Themes: peace · rest · stars · quiet · short · a private person · a small service.
Questions about reading it aloud
How long does “There Will Be Rest” take to read aloud?
“There Will Be Rest” takes about 25 seconds read aloud at a ceremony pace, which is slower than conversation — roughly 130 words a minute. That is the figure the run-sheet uses when it works out the timing for the whole service.
Who usually reads “There Will Be Rest”?
Usually the officiant rather than a guest reader. “There Will Be Rest” runs about 25 seconds, which sits inside the part of the service the officiant is already leading, and keeping it there means it is carried by the person who has rehearsed it.
Can “There Will Be Rest” be printed in a ceremony script?
Not by us. It is still in copyright, so we name it and point you at a copy rather than reprinting the words. Later than the rest of her work — it was published after she died, in 1933, so unlike her earlier poems it is very likely still in copyright and we do not reprint it. It is eight lines; print it from any Teasdale collection and have the reader bring it up with them.
A reading is two minutes of the hour.
The rest is the welcome, the life, the remembrances, the committal — and knowing what comes next. Answer some questions about them and get the whole service, written out, with this reading in its place.