Floral Tributes for the Dead

Mike

Mike

Well-known Member
Location
London
Are they out of control?

I know that it is customary for friends and family
to place a wreath or bouquet of flowers on the
coffin and grave of a deceased family member.

But are they necessary for public figures, the first
and the most prolific display of this kind was at the
death of Princess Diana, there were flowers everywhere
around the Palaces.

Same again for the Prince Philip, though not as many,
I am not a "spoilsport" or a "wet blanket", as for as I
know, but is it not just too much?

The florists are loving I bet, but perhaps it would be
more fitting to donate a sum of money to a charity.

Maybe I am a "Wet Blanket" after all.

Mike.
 

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They're is not as many for Prince Philip because Buckingham Palace have installed notices requesting people don't leave flowers, and they're immediately removed when they do...simply because they don't want crowds gathering due to the virus...

..in answer to your question..I feel that these days many people don't have a close family.. and often identify with public figures as someone close to them...
 
I'm always amazed when people go to the time trouble and expense to leave some sort of memorial tribute to a famous person, at an accident scene, etc...

Maybe I'm just too cold/practical but I've never been moved to do something like that and just can't understand it.

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Mike, I’ve been thinking the same thing. People want to make a gesture after a public death. Wish I knew of an alternative that serves the same purpose and is helpful.

Most funerals now request that no flowers be given, only a donation to a charity of your choice if desired.
 
A lot of people do something simply because a lot of other people do it. It's the 'thing' to do and following the crowd gives a feeling of being a part of something. Money donated as a tribute much more useful but not as showy
 
I like the idea of taking the flowers that were sent to funerals and to weddings and donating them to hospitals, nursing homes etc. I have seen that and wish the practice was more widespread.

Money is good, but at least some flowers are also a favorable part of the rituals
 
I think this helps the living. It's a rite of passage, a way of accepting death and saying goodbye. I do approve of it for those reasons because it's the living who matter the most.
 
A few years ago if the obituary requested a donation to a place the deceased person always donated to then that's what I would do. I also send something to the person who was related to the deceased person. Just last week my grandson's girlfriend lost her grandmother. I sent her these 2 things. They both have Beautiful loving words on them.177918sc.jpg
 
Always felt it was a waste of money, the flowers wilt, many times they’re left at the gravesite and eventually thrown out.
Sometimes, I’m sure the family could use the funds that were spent as there’s always unexpected expenses.
Sorry to be a Grinch
 
Silk flowers don't wilt. My middle sister makes it a point to always have a seasonal flower (silk) arrangement on Mom's gravesite because our mother loved plants and flowers. That is our reason and the ONLY reason for placing flowers on her gravesite.

Now, on the day of her funeral, I ordered fresh yellow roses to be made into a casket spray. It was breathtaking and I could sense her smiling down at us. To me, it was worth every cent.
 
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Old joke: A man asks a Chinese friend why he was putting food on the graves of his ancestors. "I mean...when are they going to come out of their graves and eat the food?"

His Chinese friend says, "Same time your ancestors come out of grave and smell flowers."

We were in the Vancouver, Canada, Chinatown one year for the Chinese New Year and the stores were full of cardboard TVs, computers, boomboxes, refrigerators, stoves, etc. Apparently, they are to burn so that their ancestors can have them in the afterlife. There was fake money, too, for that purpose. Makes as much sense as flowers, to me, and cheaper...
 
Family funeral flowers story: My great-uncle's second wife was a witch of a woman. She was cruel to his daughter from his first marriage and at odds with the rest of the family. He wasn't exactly a prize, himself, either, but that's another story.

He was a fairly important man in his small town, so at his funeral, there were a huge number of "floral tributes", as they're referred to in the deep South. Floral tributes are a very important part of traditional Southern funerals.....it's a huge disgrace not to have lots and lots of them at the funeral.

After the funeral, the casket was loaded in a hearse and another truck was loaded with the flowers and off to the cemetery everyone went for the grave-side service. The flowers were unloaded and heaped around the grave.

A few hours later, my mother and my grandmother drove back to the cemetery to take pictures and lo-and-behold, the flowers were gone. Poof! Not an arrangement to be seen. They flagged down a groundskeeper who told them that a truck had come after everyone left and he saw a person he knew who worked at the florist shop in town load them all up.

They drove back to town in high dudgeon, ready to lambaste the florist for taking the flowers, only to find out that "the witch" had made arrangements before the funeral to sell them all back to the florist. I did say she was a witch of a woman, didn't I? Now you know why.....
 
This free app called Meal Train has been popping up in my FB feed more often these days.

https://www.mealtrain.com/?a=aw&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIn_eCidr-7wIVmfvjBx3cgwZFEAAYAiAAEgLTYPD_BwE

It allows people to schedule a time/date to provide a homecooked meal of their own making or provide a takeout/door dash gift certificate to the family of someone that has lost a loved one, been hospitalized, etc...

It's a modern-day version of the neighbors bringing food to people during times of trouble and may make more sense than sending flowers for some people.
 

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