Seasons of Flowers

A handful of peonies, given by a bashful beau

And a flower of innocence, a pure white rose.

The flower of her refusal, a striped carnation?

Nay, she sends forsythia, a sign of her anticipation.

The two exchange at the beginning of their courtship

Wisteria, a symbol of their budding friendship.

The color of her innocence, a white carnation,

Sweet William speaks of him as a ‘forever gentleman.’

The water lily shows her pure heart

All is saved, not just a part.

The hibiscus he gives shows her grace,

She returns to him a sweet pea, the flower of shyness that shows on her face.

A lily is given to show her purity

And from him, a daffodil, the flower of chivalry.

Her modesty is shown in a violet

In the clematis, her God-given intellect.

In declaring his love,

A red tulip he should give.

Does she agree to the question, raised from his soul?

Or will she send a hyacinth, to express her sorrow?

At home he awaits.

Does the yellow tulip, flower of hopeless love, express his fate?

She sends just one flower.

A flower of love, an aster.

Alas, love does begin this night.

One bouquet of purple lilacs adorn her table of white.

To his beloved he gives the flower of protection, the holly,

And an orchid, though not half as beautiful as his lovely lady.

The hydrangea she sends shows her thanks.

He returns to her honeysuckle, the flower her sweetness does illustrate.

The bluebell as a symbol of his undying loyalty,

A single rose, the sign of their mutual simplicity.

He promises to be faithful, so a wallflower he sends

She sends him a dark-pink rose of thanks, from the flowers she tends.

Her wedding bouquet holds daisy, forget-me-not and yellow jasmine

Flowers of innocence, true love and elegance she holds in her tender hands.

Their marriage begins with the flower of trust, a spray of freesia; for them it is a must.

No swags of lavender adorn their home, for it is the flower of distrust.

All through the years, their love multiplies

They continue to pick their flowers, and high above their love does fly.

Their affection matures into a deep, and lasting love.

To show it, he gives her a red chrysanthemum.

One bright morning, many years after the day

Of that one original bouquet.

Remember the peonies?

Handed from a bashful beau to the soft hands of a lovely young lady?

Now her hands are frail.

Her weathered cheeks, once soft and rosy, now tell a tale.

Of many years of hardship, caring for her husband and children.

Many years of flowers, given from her to him.

And yet he gave her flowers, too.

Among them, a red rose that said,” I love you.”

On this day, her eyes will close to forever sleep.

The forget-me-not she grows in her garden, a symbol of his love so deep.

He holds her with his once-strong hands close to his heart

The worn hands are now feeble and delicate, far different then from the start.

And yet he presents to her a bouquet,

Held tenderly in his hands aged to a fine gray.

Every kind of flower he had ever given his precious wife.

Peonies, wisteria, daffodil and violet were only some he had given her in his long life.

He knows through the years they spent together,

She gave freely of her love, time and affection, to him from her.

She breathes a gentle sigh, and closes her hand around his.

He too closes his eyes, his hand tight around hers.

The pain is too great for him as she breathes her final breath.

Her eyes open one last time for a final look at his beloved face; she smiles in tenderness.

And then she is gone.

The bouquet of flowers he lovingly gathered, fallen from her hand.

He weeps loudly in his grief.

This life, so precious to him, had at last fallen asleep.

He lovingly gathers her still-warm body to his chest,

A smiling pansy, the flower of remembrance.

The remainder of this now-widower’s life

Will be filled with solitude, the flower of heather white.

He buries her beneath the pine

The symbol of hope that forever them binds.

And on the grave of his beloved he places

Many seeds ~ violet, sweet William, carnation included ~ of the flowers he gave.

He knows the next spring they will mature,

And as long as he lives he will remember

A handful of peonies, given by a bashful beau

And the flower of innocence, a pure white rose.

Meanings of Flower Names

(In the order they are used)

Peonies- Bashfulness

Innocence- White Rose

Striped carnation- Refusal

Forsythia- Anticipation

Wisteria- Friendship

White carnation- Innocence

Sweet William- A Forever Gentleman

Water Lily – Pure

Hibiscus- Grace

Sweet Pea- Shyness

Lily- Purity

Daffodil- Chivalry

Violet- Modesty

Clematis- Intellect

Red Tulip- Declaration of Love

Hyacinth- Sorrow

Yellow Tulip- Hopeless Love

Aster- Love

Purple Lilac- Love Begins

Holly Protection

Orchid- Beautiful Lady

Hydrangea- Thanks

Honeysuckle- Sweetness

Bluebell- Loyalty

Single Rose- Simplicity

Wallflower- Faithful

Dark Pink Rose- Thank You

Daisy- Innocence

Forget-Me-Not- True Love

Yellow Jasmine- Elegance

Freesia- Trust

Lavender- Distrust

Chrysanthemum- Love

Red Rose- Love

Forget-Me-Not- True Love

Pansy- Remembrance

White Heather- Solitude

Pine- Hope

Peonies- Bashfulness

White Rose- Innocence