<P> "You can shed tears that she is gone ..." is the opening line of a piece of popular verse, based on a short prose poem, "Remember Me", written in 1982 by English painter and poet David Harkins (born 14 November 1958). The verse--sometimes also known as "She Is Gone"--has often been given an anonymous attribution, but Harkins claimed his original authorship after it was chosen by Queen Elizabeth II as part of the funeral ceremony for her mother, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, in April 2002 . It has subsequently become a popular choice to be read at funeral ceremonies, although according to Harkins it was originally written about unrequited love, rather than death . </P> <P> At the time it was written, Harkins was a bakery worker and aspiring artist living in Carlisle, Cumbria . Writing in the Daily Mail in 2003, he said: </P>

You can shed tears that he is gone david harkins