Before sending a religious poem to a friend who is grieving ... Their love filled the world - A love that will never fade.

You might remember this poem from the 1989 film Dead Poets ... married a man whom she did not love and lost her best friend ...

Were you conditioned by academia to think that love poems, short poems, funeral poems and other forms of poetry are stuffy, profound waxings on the natural world and the human condition?

Choose four lines from the poem. Practise saying them out loud along with the actions. Now try without looking at the text. Can you perform your four lines for a friend or family member?

Love is like the wild rose-briar ... That when December blights thy brow He still may leave thy garland green. Note: this poem is included for reference purposes, please refer to your anthology ...