Flowers for the living and prayers for the dead

The various meanings of, and in life, after all these years, have so thoughtfully and kindly taught me the wisdom of saving the flowers, by not bringing them to the dead, and handing these bunches of white and red roses, these pretty orchids and imported chrysanthemums, rather, to the living. I can discern too much hypocrisy in big corporate accounts and scheming suppliers, and trapo politicians, who have the gall to send flowers to deceased VIP's, that they used to curse and gossip against, when they were still alive. The same lips that utter sweet words of praises are also the lips that blow out venom of hatred and vengefulness.

There is too much artificiality and total lack of genuine affections, when people who need something from the family of the dead, in all reckless thoughtlessness could not even discern the lack of decency, in such empty gestures, by sending very expensive flower arrangements to funeral parlors, where the deceased lay in state, with the mortal remains of the men and women that they used to hate and still do. There is too much pretensions and lack of authenticity in the lips and hearts of today's men, and even women too.

I would want to cry like Mark Anthony in the necrological rites for his dear friend Caesar: " Oh judgment, thou art fled with brutish beast. And men have lost their reasons. Bear with me. My heart is in the coffin, there with Caesar. And I shall pause till it comes back to me". Or some sort of words like those. For those flowers for the dead are the vain language of today's generation. They are all for show, for other people to see, and admire, and perhaps envy. But they have no value whatsoever to the dead. The deceased loved ones cannot smell them anymore.

There is too much meaninglessness in the eulogies delivered by politicians in fake praises for the dead political opponents. They are all for show. That is why I hate delivering eulogies and I really detest seeing too expensive flowers for the dead, when the senders could not even lend some quality moments for the living. It is all false manifestation of designing minds and shallow hearts. There is too much falsehood adorned with flowery words. And so, I give to the dead prayers. To the living, I offer the flowers.

And to those who are minded to send flowers when I shall lay dead, I earnestly appeal to them to send me the flowers now. That is the title of a book I read. And I want that to be one of my articles of faith. And when I finally go, all I need will just be a genuine beatitude and a whisper of solemn prayers. May we all rest in peace, the dead, and more so, with the living. Peace is what matters most.