A research study prepared by Karen Anderson, a specialist in counseling and psychotherapy at Edith Cowan University in Australia, and published via the Australian platform "The Conversation," clarified that flowers have a psychological and human role that goes beyond their beauty, colors, and scents. They contribute to consoling people who have lost loved ones, enhancing the sense of psychological comfort, and reducing stress.
The approach indicated that offering flowers represents a human means of expressing condolence and empathy, especially in situations where words fail to convey feelings of support. Their colors, scents, and shapes stimulate the senses and help calm the soul. It pointed out the association of flowers with mourning rituals throughout history. In Japan, chrysanthemums are associated with death, while white and yellow flowers are offered to the families of the deceased in China, and they are used in European countries to honor the dead.
For his part, the psychological aspect of the study emphasized that the presence of flowers in a person's environment may help reduce exhaustion associated with grief, based on the attention restoration theory, which assumes that spending time in nature contributes to renewing mental activity. It added that gifting flowers does not mean removing the pain of loss, but rather expressing the continuation of love and the presence of the memory of the deceased, and reminding of the possibility of combining feelings of pain with beauty and hope.
The study added that buying flowers for oneself, choosing them, and arranging them constitutes a form of self-care, as it gives a person the opportunity to enjoy beauty and feel joy and satisfaction. It concluded that flowers go beyond being a traditional gift to become a source of moral support in the face of grief and loss, expressing love, gratitude, and memories.
Source: Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA)
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