18 Easter Poems To Help You Celebrate

Have you ever looked around the Easter aisle at the store and thought to yourself, “what is going on with the mixed imagery of a bunny and chicken eggs?” Well, you’re not alone. In fact, Kelly Roper wrote an Easter poem about this very thing — and she makes a strong argument for an Easter chicken instead of a bunny.

You may think that this sounds funny,

But why do we get eggs from the Easter bunny?

Shouldn’t there be an Easter chicken

With her scrawny legs a-kickin’

As she rushes around in a whirl

Leaving Eggs for each boy and girl?

For the littlest fans of Easter, this poem by Susan M. Paprocki is perfect. It’s short, sweet, and you can even teach them little dance moves to do as they read through it. And, honestly, what’s cuter than a bunch of little kids pretending to be bunnies?

I’m an Easter Bunny, watch me hop.

Here are my two ears, see how they flop.

Here is my cotton tail, here is my nose

I’m all furry from my head to my toes.

Remember the joy of Easter egg hunts as a kid? How much effort you’d put into finding each one, and the little thrill you’d feel when you’d finally found them all (especially when they were hidden in hard-to-find places)? Julie Craig perfectly describes that joy in this sweet poem, “Egg Hunt.”

She walked among the daffodils

Eyes piercing.

Somewhere there was a treasure

Hidden within the yellow sea;

And there it was,

A silvery slip of oval goodness

Encasing a sweet wonder

Her fingertips could barely free

From its grasp.

Treasure found, she added it to

The basket filled with other such wonders

A secret smile spreading across her face.

"Easter Day" by Oscar Wilde tells the story of the moment of Jesus's resurrection, which Christians believe happened that Sunday morning, three days after his death. This is just an excerpt; read "Easter Day" in its entirety here.

The silver trumpets rang across the Dome:

The people knelt upon the ground with awe:

And borne upon the necks of men I saw,

Like some great God, the Holy Lord of Rome.

Priest-like, he wore a robe more white than foam,

And, king-like, swathed himself in royal red,

Three crowns of gold rose high upon his head:

In splendour and in light the Pope passed home.

Joyce Kilmer's poem, "Easter," is quite brief, but perfectly describes the season of rebirth for which springtime and Easter are both known.

The air is like a butterfly

With frail blue wings.

The happy earth looks at the sky

And sings.

Patrick Comerford, an online journal on Anglicanism (among other things), reported that "Easter," written by priest and theologian George Herbert, was published in 1633, not long after Herbert's death. It was originally written in two parts and later combined. It's a bit lengthy, but it's worth reading. You can read "Easter" in its entirety here.

I got me flowers to straw thy way;

I got me boughs off many a tree:

But thou wast up by break of day,

And brought'st thy sweets along with thee.

This poem, written after the Easter Rising in Ireland in 1916, is more about Easter and Plunkett's Christian faith than obvious revolutionary ideologies. Dr. Lucy Collins, a lecturer in English at University College Dublin who wrote an assessment of the poem (and others about the Easter Rising) for the Irish Independent noted, "At the centre of the poem lies the conviction that Christ's suffering will never be forgotten, as long as God's word remains the bedrock of existence." The perfect poem to read on Easter Sunday. Read "I See His Blood Upon The Rose" in its entirety here.

I see his face in every flower;

The thunder and the singing of the birds

Are but his voice-and carven by his power

Rocks are his written words.

Everyone has that one favorite Easter candy that they try to save and savor since they won’t get it again for another year, and “Patience” by Bobbie Katz is a hilarious poem about just that. It’s a story about someone who is trying to savor their chocolate bunny but just can’t seem to stop themselves once they take that first delicious bite.

Chocolate Easter bunny

In a jelly bean nest,

I’m saving you for very last

Because I love you best.

I’ll only take a nibble

From the tip of your ear

And one bite from the other side

So that you won’t look queer.

Yum, you’re so delicious!

I didn’t mean to eat

Your chocolate tail till Tuesday.

Ooops! There go your feet!

This short Allen Ginsberg poem isn't about Easter directly, but encapsulates many of the themes that Easter celebrates, like the dawning of a new day. You might have to explain how it's connected, but it's a good, unreligious read.

I speak of love that comes to mind:

The moon is faithful, although blind;

She moves in thought she cannot speak.

Perfect care has made her bleak.

I never dreamed the sea so deep,

The earth so dark; so long my sleep,

I have become another child.

I wake to see the world go wild.

"The Easter Bunny" by Josephine Todd was written in 1909 and tells the story of the Easter Bunny decorating the eggs she'll (that's right, in this poem, the Easter Bunny is a she) later bring to deserving kids. It's a cute poem and is probably especially good for the little ones. Read "The Easter Bunny" in its entirety here.

There's a story quite funny,

About a toy bunny,

And the wonderful things she can do;

Every bright Easter morning,

Without warning,

She colors eggs red, green, or blue.

"Some Things That Easter Brings" is a fun, cute little poem that's sure to get your little ones excited for Easter Sunday morning.

Easter duck and Easter chick,

Easter eggs with chocolate thick.

Easter hats for one and all,

Easter Bunny makes a call!

Happy Easter always brings

Such a lot of pleasant things.

Christina Rossetti's "An Easter Carol" is, of course, about Easter, but it's also about the changing seasons and the dawning of Spring. It's the perfect way to end the day on Easter Sunday. You can read all of "An Easter Carol" here.

Easter duck and Easter chick,

Easter eggs with chocolate thick.

Easter hats for one and all,

Easter Bunny makes a call!

Happy Easter always brings

Such a lot of pleasant things.

Who doesn’t like a haiku? They’re short, to the point, and fun. “Easter Chocolate Haiku” by Kaitlyn Guenther is no exception, and it’s meant especially for kids who love a good Easter egg hunt.

Easter bunny hides

Easter eggs are out of sight

Kids look everywhere.

Even if you’re a grown-up, there is something so magical and fun about Easter and springtime that’s hard to contain. That’s exactly what Lenore Hetrick encompassed in the poem “Easter Joy.” It’s a child’s account of Easter time, but adults can probably relate too.

It’s Easter time again!

It’s April! Time for play!

I’m going to run and jump and laugh

Each lovely springtime day!

“The Bunny Tale” by Del “Abe” Jone may seem like a child’s poem from the title, but it’s one for adults who may feel a little disheartened. It’s the story of a man who found his way to where the Easter bunny lives and wanted to stay there because the world was happy and peaceful, not frantic like the real world. Read the entire poem here.

He looked back at me

And wiggled his nose

Seems he wanted me to follow

So, I quickly arose.

I started down that trail

Amongst the forest’s trees

As that rabbit scurried off

As quickly as you’d please.

Most people recognize this more as a song, but of course lyrics are basically poems themselves. “Peter Cottontail” was written in 1949 by the same people who would later bring you “Frosty the Snowman” for a sweet, secular Easter song, and the name first appeared in 1914 in Thorton Burgess’s The Adventures of Peter Cottontail. You can hear the entire poem here.

Here comes Peter Cottontail

Hoppin’ down the bunny trail

Hippity, hoppity, Easter’s on its way