The only day men receive flowers is at their funerals. A sad fact highlighted in a recent study. Flowers, often presented as a feminine gift, don't seem compatible with imposed codes of masculinity. For Father's Day, it's time to swap the stereotypical toolbox for a beautiful bouquet. A chance to cultivate a new, tender tradition and bury the era of toxic masculinity.<\/p>\n
While women don't need a special occasion to receive bouquets with kind words on their doorsteps, men receive flowers with the inscription "rest in peace" or "tender thoughts." They are no longer of this world to receive them and marvel at their beauty. The only floral arrangements dedicated to them are limited to chrysanthemums and funeral vases with banners signifying a flight to heaven.<\/p>\n
According to a survey conducted by a flower delivery service, 88% of men receive their first bouquet at their funeral. The others only see one upon retirement or during a hospital stay. Carefully arranged bouquets are placed on granite tombstones, but they are rarely left on the kitchen table, like fleeting tokens of our love.<\/p>\n
Why wait until a man's death to make this bucolic declaration? Certainly because, in the collective imagination, flowers embody fragility, gentleness, and sensitivity\u2014the very antonyms of virility<\/a> . Flowers are the tangible illustration of romance, clutched in the palms of budding gentlemen and offered as a silent "I love you" to the women in their lives.<\/p>\n While men regularly visit the florist to spoil their sweetheart or mother, they almost never receive anything in return. Instead, they're often given flasks personalized with their name, craft beer kits, or DIY tools. These familiar gifts are more in line with societal expectations than a profusion of roses or a medley of wildflowers. <\/p>\n\n