Mamoo Balack, Roses and superstitions...

I have not felt like typing lately but however, i have written 8 pages to myself. Handwritten. Maybe it is because i did not feel like sharing what I was thinking to everyone back then...who knows? Usually, in my handwritten diary, i will review my year and then make changes for the new year based on how the past year went. This is what it was like...there were lots of laughter and equally as many tears.
Sometimes you know that something will happen but you do not expect it and when it does, you are surprised by it. this is how i felt when i heard the news about Mamoo Balak's death. He was sick but we never thought that he would die on Christmas day. so all the laughter turned to tears in the blink of an eye. I think the saddest thing was seeing mummy cry for her brother. She has that effect on people. We are so used to seeing her happy that when she cries, everyone cries as well. We did not know him but from the way she spoke of him, we learnt to love him through her. She adored her brother. Deep down we know that he is better off now but the void of losing a member of the family is still very fresh in our minds.
The Christmas tree is down and all the decorations are off earlier than usual. The house is not exactly one of mourning because it is in our nature not to mourn but to celebrate the life that the person lived. Even as the christmas decorations are off, the roses in the front are still blooming on a daily basis and they make the house look festive. It seems as if the roses are blooming for him. At least i would like to think so. Mummy said that when her father died, they got roses like that.
There is a superstition amongst our people about roses in the front of your house. They say that flowers with thorns are not good to be planted in the front of a house and one should not use them in worship. ask me if i believe it! nan had bought those roses as a birthday present for me earlier this year. I did not think twice about having them planted in the front of the house. a rose's beauty is meant to be shown off, not hidden. I guess we are not as superstitious. Daddy was using them to decorate the altar because for the first time, we had so many roses.
As for the superstition, they are the most beautiful flowers, and probably the hardest to grow and maintain. anyone who has ever tried to grow a rose from a baby plant will know that. of course, they can be used to describe life...the delicate nature, their beauty, their grace, their thorns, the insects that can plague them if not cared for, how they wither, dropping of their petals and the remains of their core when the beauty of their petals is shed. to me, having them bloom was an accomplishment because we cared for them so much. After the hurricane, i put fertilizer and miracle gro on them and even sprayed them to prevent insects from attacking them. And yes, the roses bloomed to celebrate the life that my uncle lived. they were a tribute to him.