Polarizing answers are often encountered when people are asked about receiving flowers. For others, to be given flowers makes them feel loved. Meanwhile, on the practical side of the spectrum is the amount of money that needs to be spent for it despite its ephemerality.
But when it comes to flower ephemerality, there have been types of flowers that do not wilt. These kinds of flowers have been around the internet, especially since Valentine’s Day is fast approaching.
MADE FROM SWEAT AND CALLOUSES
In the hustle and bustle, sweat, and vendors calling for your name to buy, there lies a section you’d mistake for a flower garden. But unlike flower gardens basked in the warmth of the sun or showered with love by the rain, the ones found in the Carbon Market are picked and chosen by calloused hands—proof of hard work, from the vendors with love to buyers who love.
EXTRAORDINARY FLOWERS
Stumbling upon stall after stall of flowers in the middle of the Carbon Market is the sole flower vendor who sells eternal flowers—the kind of flowers that never die like how love never does. Bouquets in rainbow, minimalist, monochrome, and maximalist styles for as low as P150 filled Jenny Bonghanoy’s stall inside Carbon Market in Cebu City.
What makes her stall stand out among others is the flower display, which is made of soap, satin, recycled leaves, cotton, and paper. The materials her flowers are made of make them bloom forever.
In a personal interview with Sugbo.ph, Bonghanoy answered that despite the flowers being artificial, there are still people who buy, and some even repurchase.
“Nang-order man sila karon nga year. maka-ingon sila nga, “ay wa jud siya nadaot. nakita ra gyud namo. Nadecorate pa gyud namo. nareuse pa gyud namo. Mao na” mao nay nakanindot sa ani,” Bonhanoy reminisced her favorite memory selling artificial flowers.
ARTIFICIAL FLOWERS ARE MERE FAKE FLOWERS
Artificial flowers are often perceived as fake or, worse, ingenuine. However, for flower sellers like Bonghanoy, artificial flowers mean long-lasting, which is one reason she has pursued selling artificial flowers since she started selling them on Valentine’s Day last year.
“Naa man guy uban nga “Ay, kani artificial” dili ni siya artificial. Pariha aning soap, soap rose, pero’g imo siyang i-kuan, molong last man gud siya. Naa man guy uban nga pang lifetime gali siya nga kuan, magamit pud nimo siya.”
Before selling these kinds of flowers, Bonghanoy has been selling fresh flowers. And even up to now, she’s still selling fresh flowers together with the artificial flowers.
As she prioritizes artificial flowers, she is also preparing her stocks in preparation for the influx of demand for this fast–approaching Valentine’s based on the positive turnout last Valentine’s.
“Satisfaction sa customer. nga masatisfy sila either kani lang, ingon lang atong mga buwak, mga dried lang dili jud siya fresh ba. Ang mindset tao ba, “Ay, artificial” so naay uban nga masatisfy ra jud sila magbalik-balik,”
Bonghanoy answered when asked about her favorite thing as a florist.
This just shows that love is not only glimpsed between lovers; it is also innate in mundane activities and interactions between normal people- between the florist and her customers, between co-vendors, and between florists and their crafts.
Although flower preference is each to his own, receiving flower bouquets formed of artificial flowers is heartwarming knowing it is made by people like Bonghanoy who gave every ounce of energy and every drop of sweat to embody love in a bouquet.
With Valentine’s Day nearly approaching, artificial flowers are one of the best ways of declaring your lifetime love to your other half because it does not die. For more information about Jenny Bonghanoy’s Bouquets, you may visit her stall in Carbon Market or contact her on her Facebook page, Sky Blooms Creations.
