Member-only story
Flowers At A Funeral
What’s the point?
No seriously, Why waste time and money?
Sure, flowers at a funeral were an important countermeasure to the horrid smell of decaying flesh while family and friends traveled days to visit the body of a loved one.
A viewing in 80-degree heat damages the olfaction senses as grandma or grandpa rots on a linen-covered table in the sitting room. The sweet smell of roses did wonders to mask the scent.
That was centuries ago. What’s the point now? We’ve got air conditioning.
We can keep Nana and Papa at a cool 65 and have them 6 feet deep before you smell your own sweat.
Flowers though. Is it even necessary?
If you answer that it’s customary, it’s not. It makes no sense in the 21st century.
But it’s symbolism. So is half the color palette, but it’s not determining life choices anymore.
Sure death is tragic, and freshly cut flowers with a 24-hour shelf might make you forget that someone you love is dead, but like the body, you will be throwing those bouquets away before the first worm starts digesting grandma.
And though Granny is passed on to the great unknown, I bet bottom dollar she would have rather had the 15-minute phone conversation you had with the florist than a…
