I arrived two hours early
But it was too late for you
I strode along the beach
At Dovercourt
My heels sinking
In the wet sand and shingle
The wind was so strong
That the gulls seemed
To float on the air
Without flapping their wings
And across-channel ferry
Sat on the horizon
Then was suddenly gone
Five years when I saw you
Now a man
With his tie inside out
Hurries towards an empty pew
And the ushers are
Laying out the flowers
That your friends
Had brought for you
And taking up the messages
And scraping the tack
That was stuck
To the lid of your coffin
Oh My heels were sinking
In the wet sand and shingle
My visit was
Regrettably overdue
But you would have laughed
I made it in such good time
To bury you