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Duchess of Cambridge's (Kate Middleton) wedding boquet conveyed special meaning
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Too ashamed to say the words, "I'm sorry", too shy and bashful to utter those three little words, "I love you" or just let a friend know how dear and special their friendship is to you. When words aren't enough or your lips simply can't speak the words flowers can convey the special message for you.
A close friend recently lent me a book she had finished reading, telling me that all the time thinking of me whilst reading it. This I had to question as the lead character was a bit of a nut case and I feared there was something she was trying to subtly tell me... as it turns out I had nothing to fear, it was simply the case that the character was a florist and was visiting the flower markets at the wee hours of the morning... The book was titled, '
The language of flowers', by Vanessa Diffenbaugh (more
here) and whilst it wasn't one of those amazing reads that you simply cannot put down for love nor money or turn the light off to sleep, it did come into my life at a very poignant moment and left me with a clear message. It's funny how things find you when you need them, just as
Sarah Wilson puts it in her post today, "what's for you won't pass you by".
With a few changes happening around here of late I was assessing my desire and ability to re-enrol for my second semester of my floristry course. Already feeling fatigued with morning sickness and all that comes with being pregnant, the idea of having to get up again at with the sparrows to get to the flower markets was not appealing to me. Also, to be completely honest I didn't 100% love my first semester of class - this is just me being me and wanting to run before I walk, or even crawl! I found a lot of the theory information to be common sense, yet we had mountains of homework and assisgnments to complete, and the arrangements we covered in our practical classes were just simply not 'me'! When I've mentioned to family and friends my hesitation in going back they're very to the point! "NO - you're going back, you just have to get over the boring bits and the good stuff will come", or something to that effect most of the time... They're right too, I need to buck up and get over myself.
So this is where reading '
The language of flowers' comes in. Amidst the storyline the lead character arranges flowers not according to how they go together harmoniously colourwise or how the client stipulates, she creates arrangements of flowers according to the very old Victorian language of flowers which was used mianly to convey romantic expressions, for example honeysuckle means devotion; aster implies patience and the most famous of all red roses for love - of course! Through these special flower arrangements messages can be conveyed in a way which words could not.
It was as if an arrow was shot through my heart when I realised this is what flowers mean to me. I've always said my plants and flowers 'speak to me' - people just think I'm crazy (and maybe there is a bit of truth in that too) but I feel they have a greater purpose and power than just their beauty alone. I've written an earlier post on a sweet little book I found on a second-hand book table that a dear husband had written for his wife many many moons ago.
So as I take on another six months of class, endeavouring to get my skills up to the mark where my aspriations lie I bring with me a new found sense of meaning to my arrangements.
PS. The Duchess of Cambridge's wedding bouquet was a selection of flowers chosen for their special meanings:
Lily of the Valley -- Return of happiness
White Hyacinth -- Constancy of love
Ivy -- Fidelity, marriage, wedded love, affection
Myrtle -- Emblem of marriage, fidelity and everlasting love
Sweet William -- gallantry
