Have you ever heard a woman say that she doesn’t like to receive flowers because they just end up dying? Or, a man say that he doesn’t like to buy a woman flowers because they just end up dying? What the fuck is up with that? There’s so much beautiful symbolism in the entire process of becoming a flower from seed to rooting to extending upward with stems and now growing leaves, in the developing of beautiful petals and colors and shapes, and then, finally slowly wilting, dropping its leaves and then yes, dying. Isn’t this a beautiful metaphor for life? 🌤️MY MOTHER’S PASSING & THESE FLOWERS My mother recently transitioned so a dear friend of mine, who is also a member of this community, dropped off these beautiful flowers at my door to acknowledge my mourning. Obviously they’re beautiful, and I have looked at them daily with fond remembrance of both my mother and my friend who gave me these flowers, but there’s more to this. ❓I kept hearing that statement “flowers die anyway,” and thinking how stupid it is because everything dies, but not everything that dies offers us such effortless beauty, comfort and joy. Although my mother’s and my relationship was not very close, we did in fact have deep love for each other. We somehow always navigated back to peace. I would send her flowers every year for her birthday sometimes with candy or a little trinket and she loved it because she didn’t always get acknowledged much on her birthday from my brothers and I’ve been living 6000 miles away from her. So when my friend dropped off these flowers and I discovered them at my front door, I immediately thought of my mom and how I gifted her flowers every year, and that this was sort of a full circle moment for me. I received flowers in honor of my mother almost as if they were from her. I look at this gorgeous bouquet with gratitude for my friend who dropped them off to me even though her schedule was super fucking crazy tight. I think of the beauty that they hold and the fragrance that they emit simply for my joy, for my pleasure, for my peace. And, I think of my mom who loved receiving flowers from me. These flowers that will “die anyway” have brought so much JOY!!!! (Mahalo piha e tita!)