The parade was a rounding success, and 50 tonnes of flowers being used to create a stunning flower carpet.
Tied with human emotions, flowers can help create real change
Published: Thu 12 Dec 2019, 10:54 AM
Last updated: Thu 12 Dec 2019, 1:03 PM
A rose by any other name smells just as sweet. When 5,000 residents of the UAE gathered on November 22, to mark the Year of Tolerance, they also brought the fragrance of virtues of the flora that gives flowers their beauty and their strength as symbols of good things in life.
The 50 tonnes of flowers in grand variety that created this unique carpet of goodwill and togetherness has served as an example of the power of peace and richly deserves the Guinness Book of Records accolade, as it went far ahead of the June 2016 record held by Italy.
The idea was not to compete in any way, but to increase the stakes for a good and worthy cause. It was relevant and fitting that the 150 nationalities that wove this splendour in the grass were celebrating the UAE's Year of Tolerance, a message to the world that the ambassadors of tolerance were on the march and wishing to be heard.
The use of different flowers, as explained by Convenor Anoop Anil Devan brought in from India and Kenya, brought its own eloquent message. Flowers have been used as decor since 2,500 BC when the Egyptians showed an affection for them. The oldest flower traced was the 130 million-year-old Monteschia unearthed in Spain in 2015.
In the Farmer's Almanac, Catherine Baekman wrote, "The symbolic language of flowers has been recognised for centuries in many countries throughout Europe and Asia. They even play a large role in William Shakespeare's works.
"Nearly every sentiment imaginable can be expressed with flowers. The orange blossom, for instance, means chastity, purity, and loveliness, while the red chrysanthemum means 'I love you'.
"Examples of plants and their associated human qualities during the Victorian era include bluebells and kindness, peonies and bashfulness, rosemary and remembrance, and tulips and passion," she added.
Throughout history, flowers have had meaning and speak a language of their own. The rose stands for love and passion, the lilac for tranquility, the orchid for innocence, all of them sentiments so vital for tolerance.
We have the gladioli for strength and for integrity, the hydrangea for emotion and depth of feeling. There is the sunflower for loyalty, the tulip for love, representing other human emotions that are so vital for us to live in mutual respect and regard.
It was not just the spread of flowers across the two football fields that was important, or the intricacies of the pattern, though they also counted but it was the purity of the event, the dedication and affection for mankind and the call of the throng to say; let us be one and help and guide and appreciate one another.
It is said that if you give flowers with your right hand you are saying 'yes'. If you give them with your left, then the answer is 'no'.
In the citadel of tolerance, we give them with both hands, which means 'for always'.