The Funeral of My Flowers
“We let things go not to lose them, but to carry them differently.” ~Goodmoodism
We don’t release things because they stop mattering. We release them when we’re ready to honor what they meant, to acknowledge the space they held, and let their memory live softly and lovingly.
In 2018, I realized it was time to let go of things I had carried with me for years. Moving across continents, countries, cities, and more apartments than I can count had kept my belongings light, but a few precious items always managed to come along.
The hardest to let go of were my dried flowers, which I had received in Germany. I cared for them so well that, even years later, they still held their beauty.
Once fresh and alive, they had dried but never lost their grace, fragile yet still lovely, carefully preserved through every move.
They weren’t just flowers anymore; they were proof of moments, memories, love, loss, and chapters I wasn’t ready to close until that day.
By 2019, I knew I couldn’t keep them forever. But the thought of simply throwing them away felt wrong.
They had traveled with me to four different cities in Germany and lived through countless apartments. They had lasted so long, to toss them out like nothing would have been too harsh.
My boyfriend at the time, H. saw my struggle and said, “If you’d like, I can dig a hole in the garden. You can bury them. That way, they’ll go back to nature.”
It was the most thoughtful idea. He dug the hole, put on calming music, and stood beside me as I carried my flowers to their resting place.
I cried while laying them down, but with his support, the moment felt less like throwing something away and more like giving them back. Together, we covered them with earth, returning them to the world they had once brightened.
Letting go is rarely easy. To some, they were just dried flowers. To me, they were living memories, kept alive a little longer by care and love. And in that little garden burial, I finally let them go, not in neglect, but with tenderness.
I’ll always carry the memory, the feelings, and the emotions of receiving them, but even more, I’ll forever remember the kindness of that goodbye and the person who honored my grief and turned it into something meaningful.
With a thankful smile,
GOO:DMOO:DISM