Far Too Late For Helpston's John Clare

He is arguably England's greatest Nature poet
Yet in his lifetime not seen as one worthy of note
He died in the Northampton Asylum where he had lived for years
But his passing did not stir a Nation to tears

Of his worth as a poet poetry lovers aware
But all that far too late for Helpston's John Clare
Sad and poor and demented when he drew his last breath
But a legend of literature decades after his death.

Forgotten in life after a brief spell of fame
He died without any money to his name
For one self educated great poems he did write
A pleasure to read and a joy to recite.

His verses on the ladybird named Clock A Clay
Is one of the World's great poems of today
And I Am and The Badger and The Thrush's Nest
Better poems than most and as good as the best.