Florist News

This is something that i have always wondered about.......... how do you all deal with taking a funeral order?

Having been in the business for 15 plus years, I know that it is something that you get used to, unless for me personally I find dealing with a childs or babys death very difficult. You hold your bottom lip up unitl the customers have gone out the door and then blub or with some customers you can let your eyes well up. Again that is something that comes with experience.

As you know by now we do a lot of funeral work and I just thought I`d ask how all of you cope when dealing with greaving customers......................just being nosey

Yes I think the Wicker Coffin got to me

I like to think I was always detached and professonal.......it's no good to the poor grieving customer to have you blubbing as well as them.

One particular funeral comes to mind though....and one that changed my outlook forever. The parents of a very sick child that had died after a long illness came in to order the flowers...oh how efficient I was. They asked for the flowers to be delivered to the chapel of rest late in the day and we obviously obliged. When I saw that tiny white coffin on it's own, I broke down.......and to this day remember the terrible feeling of leaving the baby alone for the night. I do hope someone stayed with her....I like to think they did.

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['I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it'. Voltaire

Mardy that is so sad, know wonder that sticks with you. Sometimes the family aren`t grieving at all and don`t your ears prick up when you hear of a family feud and they all try and out do the others with regards to flowers, or they just want to talk to a stranger to tell of what happy times and funny stories!!!!












"always look on the bright side of death!"..... Monty Python

I think its hard most times even worse if you know the person thats died.x

its sooo difficult you can sometimes get quite invoved with the bereaved family but its lovely when they come back and say thankyou for the beautiful flowers we have provided.
we have recently had a little girl die and we had sent her balloons and baskets of fruit,mostly grapes and strawberries, at bristol childrens hospital she came home for the last week and desperately wanted snow so the family arranged fake snow in thier garden for her (our delivery driver wondered wot was going on when she drove by)it was difficult to help the family with the flowers but they were very happy with the tributes we had done

Normally i'm fine with the customers while they're in the shop. To date tho, i haven't attached a card to a tribute without crying....

But i did blub with a customer last week and it wasn't even a funeral.... Really old fella came in, didn't know what he wanted etc... so i'm straight in with the 'well whats it for?'' then he breaks down. He's going to visit his wife of 60 years. They've taken her to a care home. Its 30 miles away... oh my god - i'm a very happily married woman - i just can't imagine how devastating that must be .... chit, crying again!

Im usually pretty good. Don't tend to let them get to me.

Although just before valentines day our town lost a young girl. Always had a smile on her face, no one had anything but good to say about her. Was a great loss.

I was fine until I delivered the flowers and saw her casket. Lovely wicker with a bright pink trim. That set me off, couldnt stop crying for ages. All the flowers were bright pink, everyone wore pink to her celebration, and as they lowered her to sleep hundreds of her school mates and friends let go off pink balloons.

That night the sky had a wonderful pink glow. We took that to be lucy telling us that she got the balloons

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www.AmandasFlorist.co.uk

the first week i did W/E from college the shop did a casket spray it was beautiful i was admiring it and having a really good nose when i read the 4 tribute cards it was for a mum/wife off the three youngish children all under teenage and the hubby - i just sobbed my heart out - those poor babies loosing their mum

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