The Flower Factor

by Laura Kenny and Ann Lamoureux


You wait anxiously, pushing your way to the front, fighting off all the other girls that would even dare to stand between you and the "The List." Finally you work your way up to the front, bruised and battered, just to look at a piece of paper that will determine the fate of your happiness on Valentine's Day. All this madness and commotion is because of flowers. Simple, overpriced and overrated flowers.

What is so special about getting flowers on Valentine's Day anyway? You don't even get them until the end of the day, and then all you get to do is carry them out to your car. Sure they're pretty, and sure the thought behind them is nice, but why do they have to be sent to school? Why can't your loved ones give them to you in person?

In our opinion, flowers have become almost a symbol of popularity. What was once a meaningful gesture has become almost mandatory, and the meaning has been removed. So we ask each of you who get flowers on Valentine's Day or any day, why doesn't your loved one give them to you personally? Are they a symbol of status or a symbol of love?

More and more it seems like flowers are being paraded around by people to broadcast their popularity. You don't just see it on Valentine's Day, but also on birthdays and anniversaries.

You will pass people in the hallway carrying these monstrously big bouquets, and sometimes they are so big, you can't even see the person behind the flowers. You wonder "what's the point?"

It can't be convenient having to carry around these flowers all day. Most of the time they end up getting left on a shelf somewhere dead. We are not saying that flowers are a bad thing at school, we're just trying to make you think about the reason why getting flowers is so important.

Does the person who gets them for you do it because everyone else does it, or because they really care a lot about you.

So the next time you see someone walking down the hall carrying a bouquet of flowers, think to yourself, status or sincerity?

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