What did Brad Pitt say about the romantic secret of life?
May 31, 2004 | 12:00am
Nothing in the world is as enchanting as a flower. The poet Ralph Waldo Emerson says, "Earth laughs in flowers." The earth must be merriest in May because this is the month when millions of flowers burst into bloom.
With due respect to Emerson, I dare say, "The earth seduces with flowers." They are the most colorful, attractive, mystifying and seductive of all of God’s creations. I also believe that as long as there are flowers, man will always be assured of God‚s love for the earth. Flowers are a sign of the eternal cycle of reproduction and seduction. When flowers no longer bloom to herald the hope brought by spring and summer, the end of the world would surely be near.
We have seen the NASA Explorer photos of Mars, Jupiter and other planets, and they seem to be barren and flowerless. Writer Iris Murdoch surmises, "People from a planet without flowers would think we must be mad with joy the whole time to have such things about us." Indeed, flowers bring immeasurable joy to this otherwise arduous life of suffering. Can you ever imagine a world without flowers?
Throughout the ages, man has used flowers to express diverse emotions – happiness, admiration, fondness, caring, joy, elation, romance, and deep, undying love. No other symbol is as eloquent as a bunch, bouquet or garland of flowers (sometimes even more stunning as a solo bud or stem!) to express congratulations, invitation, anticipation, missing, welcoming, condolence, apology, triumph and celebration. Flowers are consecrated in prayer, conveyed as a peace offering, sent to cheer up the sick, presented to honor dignitaries, given in remembrance of the departed. And of course, flowers are employed as decorative accents to add freshness, beauty and color to interiors and landscapes.
Poets have written countless verses, odes and sonnets about flowers; musicians have created lyrics and haunting melodies in their honor. Ralph Waldo Emerson declares, "Flowers... are a proud assertion that a ray of beauty out-values all the utilities of the world" while Walt Whitman confides, "A morning-glory at my window satisfies me more than the metaphysics of books." Emma Goldman says, "I’d rather have roses on my table than diamonds around my neck." The impressionist painter Claude Monet muses, "I perhaps owe having become a painter to flowers."
More than just a pretty sight, flowers exude their seductive scent. And what perfume is complete without the intoxicating essence and oils squeezed from flowers?
In the poem Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard, Thomas Gray writes, "Full many a gem of purest ray serene, the dark unfathom’d caves of ocean bear: Full many a flower is born to blush unseen, and waste its sweetness on the desert air."
Roses, lilies, tulips, carnations, chrysanthemums, daisies, violets, irises, orchids – there must be millions of varieties of flowers, all unique, all beautiful. Have you ever wondered how many flowers were born to blush unseen? Such is the wealth and profusion in the universe – there is too much beauty not laid upon by human eyes. But one thing is certain: The eternal seduction goes on for the flower always faces in the direction of the sun.
God meant for man to live with flowers. He made them so beautiful that even the most coldhearted could not resist their bewitching spell. The Koran declares, "Bread feeds the body indeed, but flowers feed also the soul." An old Chinese proverb mandates: "When you have only two pennies left in the world, buy a loaf of bread with one, and a lily with the other."
Ann Morrow Lindberg shares a well-known secret: "Arranging a bowl of flowers in the morning can give a sense of quiet in a crowded day like writing a poem or saying a prayer." Furthermore, Robert G. Ingersoll comments, "Every flower about a house certifies to the refinement of somebody. Every vine climbing and blossoming tells of love and joy."
Jacques Deval once wrote, "God loved the birds and invented trees. Man loved the birds and invented cages." To this, a variation ensued: "God loved the flowers and invented soil. Man loved the flowers and invented vases." Should we cut flowers and vase them?
William Allingham admonishes, "Pluck not the wayside flower; it is the traveler’s dower." The Washington Post sarcastically asks, "Why do people give each other flowers? To celebrate various important occasions, they‚re killing living creatures? Why restrict it to plants? "Sweetheart, let’s make up. Have this deceased squirrel." Sensitive poet Edna St. Vincent Millay maintains, "I will be the gladdest thing under the sun! I will touch a hundred flowers and not pick one."
I prefer sending flowers in a pot, alive with roots and all. But man, who is always trying to improve and reinvent God’s masterpieces, wants to use his hands to arrange flowers with other blooms, leaves, twigs and rocks. For him, flower arranging is an expression, an art. In this light, cutting and putting flowers in vases is forgivable. But how those flowers must cry!
Although it’s all right to give wreaths to the dead, I believe in giving flowers to the living. I lament that I didn’t shower my mother more often with roses and orchids when she was alive (for she deserved them) while she could really enjoy them. As Arabella Smith puts it beautifully, "Keep not your roses for my dead, cold brow; the way is lonely, let me feel them now."
American golfer Ben Hogan advises, "As you walk down the fairway of life you must smell the roses, for you only get to play one round." Top motivator Dale Carnegie laments, "One of the most tragic things I know about human nature is that all of us tend to put off living. We are all dreaming of some magical rose garden over the horizon – instead of enjoying the roses that are blooming outside our windows today."
It is important to take time out of our busy lives to pause and smell the flowers and appreciate the blessings that surround us. In our hurry through life, we miss the joy and the spectacle of the journey. Ralph Waldo Emerson counsels, "Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything that is beautiful; for beauty is God’s handwriting – a wayside sacrament. Welcome it in every fair face, in every fair sky, in every fair flower, and thank God for it as a cup of blessing."
Maurice Maeterlinck questions, "Can we conceive what humanity would be if it did not know the flowers?" Lydia M. Child shares, "Flowers have spoken to me more than I can tell in written words. They are the hieroglyphics of angels, loved by all men for the beauty of their character, though few can decipher even fragments of their meaning."
Truly, the little flower in its seeming innocence must hold the secret to life’s mystery. Alfred Lord Tennyson implores, "Little flower, but if I could understand, what you are, root and all in all, I should know what God and man is."
Man and flowers are similar. Both are fleeting, impermanent. Flowers wilt, wither and dry up; man grows old and dies. Antonio Porchia reveals, "Flowers are without hope. Because hope is tomorrow and flowers have no tomorrow." Man and flowers are ruled by time. Robert Herrick cautions: "Gather ye rosebuds while ye may, old Time is still a-flying: And this same flower that smiles today, tomorrow will be dying."
In the blockbuster movie Troy, Achilles (Brad Pitt) shares with his lady love what I believe is the most ultimate, romantic secret of life: "The gods envy us. They envy us because we are mortal, because any moment might be our last. Everything is more beautiful because we are doomed!" Like man, flowers are doomed. Here today, gone tomorrow. Every second is worth an eternity. This, ironically, is the very essence of life. The beauty of existence is in the preciousness of our impermanence.
I’d love to hear from you! For your comments, e-mail DeroSeminar@yahoo.com. Should you want to forward this article, please acknowledge the author and The Philippine Star.
With due respect to Emerson, I dare say, "The earth seduces with flowers." They are the most colorful, attractive, mystifying and seductive of all of God’s creations. I also believe that as long as there are flowers, man will always be assured of God‚s love for the earth. Flowers are a sign of the eternal cycle of reproduction and seduction. When flowers no longer bloom to herald the hope brought by spring and summer, the end of the world would surely be near.
We have seen the NASA Explorer photos of Mars, Jupiter and other planets, and they seem to be barren and flowerless. Writer Iris Murdoch surmises, "People from a planet without flowers would think we must be mad with joy the whole time to have such things about us." Indeed, flowers bring immeasurable joy to this otherwise arduous life of suffering. Can you ever imagine a world without flowers?
More than just a pretty sight, flowers exude their seductive scent. And what perfume is complete without the intoxicating essence and oils squeezed from flowers?
Roses, lilies, tulips, carnations, chrysanthemums, daisies, violets, irises, orchids – there must be millions of varieties of flowers, all unique, all beautiful. Have you ever wondered how many flowers were born to blush unseen? Such is the wealth and profusion in the universe – there is too much beauty not laid upon by human eyes. But one thing is certain: The eternal seduction goes on for the flower always faces in the direction of the sun.
Ann Morrow Lindberg shares a well-known secret: "Arranging a bowl of flowers in the morning can give a sense of quiet in a crowded day like writing a poem or saying a prayer." Furthermore, Robert G. Ingersoll comments, "Every flower about a house certifies to the refinement of somebody. Every vine climbing and blossoming tells of love and joy."
William Allingham admonishes, "Pluck not the wayside flower; it is the traveler’s dower." The Washington Post sarcastically asks, "Why do people give each other flowers? To celebrate various important occasions, they‚re killing living creatures? Why restrict it to plants? "Sweetheart, let’s make up. Have this deceased squirrel." Sensitive poet Edna St. Vincent Millay maintains, "I will be the gladdest thing under the sun! I will touch a hundred flowers and not pick one."
I prefer sending flowers in a pot, alive with roots and all. But man, who is always trying to improve and reinvent God’s masterpieces, wants to use his hands to arrange flowers with other blooms, leaves, twigs and rocks. For him, flower arranging is an expression, an art. In this light, cutting and putting flowers in vases is forgivable. But how those flowers must cry!
Although it’s all right to give wreaths to the dead, I believe in giving flowers to the living. I lament that I didn’t shower my mother more often with roses and orchids when she was alive (for she deserved them) while she could really enjoy them. As Arabella Smith puts it beautifully, "Keep not your roses for my dead, cold brow; the way is lonely, let me feel them now."
It is important to take time out of our busy lives to pause and smell the flowers and appreciate the blessings that surround us. In our hurry through life, we miss the joy and the spectacle of the journey. Ralph Waldo Emerson counsels, "Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything that is beautiful; for beauty is God’s handwriting – a wayside sacrament. Welcome it in every fair face, in every fair sky, in every fair flower, and thank God for it as a cup of blessing."
Truly, the little flower in its seeming innocence must hold the secret to life’s mystery. Alfred Lord Tennyson implores, "Little flower, but if I could understand, what you are, root and all in all, I should know what God and man is."
In the blockbuster movie Troy, Achilles (Brad Pitt) shares with his lady love what I believe is the most ultimate, romantic secret of life: "The gods envy us. They envy us because we are mortal, because any moment might be our last. Everything is more beautiful because we are doomed!" Like man, flowers are doomed. Here today, gone tomorrow. Every second is worth an eternity. This, ironically, is the very essence of life. The beauty of existence is in the preciousness of our impermanence.
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