Language of Flowers

I recently read something that had to do with the language of flowers. It was really well written and I was intrigued by how the story was able to move forward without any actual dialogue. To express his gratitude to his new boss and his boss' assistant, he sent his boss' assistant flowers with the message, 'These flowers represent you.' The flowers he used were plum blossoms, which mean long-lasting beauty, and dahlias, elegance and dignity. To his new boss, he sent campanula and lemon blossoms, to express his gratitude and the fact they have to be discrete [meanings with respect to the named flowers]. He and his boss, who's first job in high school was with a florist [for this story that is], continue to use flowers as a way to communicate. A yellow carnation from his boss to show disappointment when he screws up. An oxeye dasiy (patience) left on his boss' desk during long cases. After a particularly hard case, daffodils (respect and chivalry) on his boss' desk and a piece of agrimony (thankfulness) in his own pocket. They resolve a fight through the flowers and as they slowly enter a relationship with each other, they use flowers to admit their feelings for each other, and not just by using the classic red rose. Flowers are again used to confess their love to one another. It's a great story and I'll admit it, it was a fanfic, a Suits fanfic, called An Expression of Feelings (linked if you want to read it yourself). But it was beautiful and eyeopening. I didn't know there was a whole language to flowers. I knew some flowers had a meaning to them, but didn't know that it went deeper than just love and friendship.

Anyway, I looked into it and it's sooo cool! I found out that one of my favorite flowers, marigolds (yellow, but the color doesn't affect their meaning) mean grief, cruelty, and jealousy. Meanwhile, the petunia, a flower I generally don't care for because they look sad to me even if they are at their peak of beauty, has a complex meaning and the giver should understand what the petunia means before giving. Carnations have various meanings depending on their color. Some of them can be used in reply to something like a declaration of love. The red carnation means yes. The yellow carnation means rejection (or disappointment, I've seen both). The striped carnation means many things, No; Refusal; I can’t be with you; Wish I Could Be with You, as well as maybe or indecision. However, some of the others mean something other than an answer. The pink carnation is often used as a symbol for a mother's undying love (or really undying love in general), but it also means 'I'll never forget you.' The purple carnation means capriciousness, and the carnation in general means fascination, or divine love. The point is that the language of flowers is beautiful and complex. It's something that takes time and effort in order to convey exactly what you mean. I plan on looking further into it and maybe even one day use it myself, probably sooner rather than later. So for now, here's a cyclamen, Sanders out.