I Am Stretched on Your Grave
Kate Rusby Lyrics

I am stretched on your grave
I am lying on top of your burial site, presumably of someone she loved.

And I'll lie here forever.
She intends to remain and die there, either literally or metaphorically.

If your hands were in mine
If the deceased person were alive, they wouldn't be separated.

I'd be sure they would not sever.
She would ensure that they weren't parted from each other.

My apple tree, my brightness,
It is possible that the deceased person is symbolically referred to as an apple tree, which was a symbol of love.

It's time we were together.
It's been too long apart and they should be together again.

For I smell of the earth
She smells earthy, likely from lying on the grave or from being connected to nature.

And I'm worn by the weather.
She's been exposed to the elements and it has taken a physical and emotional toll on her.

When my family think
She is hiding her emotions from her family.

That I am safely in my bed
Her family believes she's in bed, perhaps asleep or resting.

Oh from morn' until night
She thinks about the deceased person constantly all day.

I am stretched at your head
She is physically lying at the head of the grave.

Calling out unto the earth
She is speaking to the deceased person or to nature itself, lamenting the loss.

With tears hot and wild
She is crying intensely and uncontrollably.

For the loss of a girl
The deceased person was a woman, possibly a young girl or someone she knew as a girl.

That I loved as a child.
She loved this person since she was a child or remembers her as a child.

Do you remember the night
She is addressing the deceased person directly, asking if they remember a certain night they experienced together.

Oh, the night when we were lost
They were lost or unsure about what they were doing that night, perhaps in a dreamlike state.

In the shade of the black-thorn
Blackthorn is a type of tree or shrub with sharp spines or thorns, and it is associated with protection and healing.

And the touch of the frost?
There was also frost on the ground, which suggests the night was cold and still.

Oh, and thanks be to Jesus
She is expressing gratitude to God for them doing what they needed to do that night.

We did all that was right
They made the right choices that night and everything turned out okay.

And your maidenhead still
This line could refer to a few different things, but it likely means that the deceased person's purity or virginity is still a source of protection and light for her.

Is your pillar of light.
The deceased person's purity is a bright and shining light in her life.

Oh the priests and the friars
Religious figures are fearful of her because of her intense grief and mourning.

They approach me in dread,
Priests and friars are afraid of her because of her deep sorrow and they don't know how to help her.

Oh, for love of you still
She still loves the deceased person deeply and the priests and friars don't understand her attachment.

Oh, my life, and you're dead.
She feels like her life is over since the person she loved has died, and she doesn't know how to move forward without them.

I still will be your shelter
She will continue to be a source of comfort and protection for the deceased person, even though they are gone.

Through rain and through storm
She will weather any hardship or difficulty to keep the memory of the deceased person alive.

And with you in your cold grave
She acknowledges that the deceased person is in a cold grave, which highlights the finality of death.

I can not sleep warm.
She can't find comfort or peace in life because the person she loved is gone.