Acanthus

Acanthus is a flower which means art, and/or artifice depending on the arrangement and what other elements are included. Artifice refers to a skill of craft that while clever is often manipulative or deceptive. Although this plant is also said to symbolize long life or immortality and rebirth - longevity and healing. They are often seen in different architectural designs but the most noticeable time they are used are in the mausoleums, tombstones, and even funerary items. The appearance of this plant is evident everywhere, from borders and wallpapers to jewelry.

It is no wonder because humans have a way of being curious about the life after death. By incorporating this plant to our lives, we are accepting the concept of immortality and rebirth. Which reminds me of a popular concept that many of us may have encountered or heard of, "reincarnation".

Whether you personally believe in it or not, it is undeniably an interesting concept. Horrifying in a way because we always have to experience living and interacting with the same people in different lifetimes. Stuck in a karmic cycle that only ends when you met the conditions that are said you have agreed to before rebirth but is forgotten once you breathe first into the world. Fascinating because it gives a kind of reasonable explanation as to why there are people who are suddenly so good at something even though they are just starting, as if their body already knows how to do what they want to do. It also gives a whole new meaning to old souls. Do you think this reincarnation idea is the root of the phrase, "History repeats itself"?

How many times have we wondered of how life is before and after the technological advancement? Do you think we have lived in this world before and are just doing some karmic cleaning which is why we are back here again? Or are you part of the YOLO (You Only Live Once) group who wants to make the most of this single life we are given?

I personally do not think that we only live once. Hypothetically, we are on the brink of death every 3 minutes and our restarts when we take a breath. Which is why I think this plant is good to have everywhere. Not because it means that we have a life after death, because no one knows that for sure, and those that do are already dead and can not share what is out there but because it reminds us that we have a lot of chances for a new start.

Death does not need to mean literal death, where our hearts stop beating and our brains stop working. I am of the opinion that we undergo multiple deaths in our lifetime which is why we are not the same person we are a few years ago or even a few days ago. We continue to learn, unlearn, and relearn things throughout our lives that I believe we experience life multiple times.

This flower's other meaning is also a reflection of the human life- artifice. For many, they wear masks to fool the people around them. Some do it for they do not know themselves or they do not have enough confidence in themselves. Others use it for nefarious purposes such as to scam people, hurt people or even ruin their lives by isolating them.

What is clear though is that everyone wears a mask. There is no one who knows us better than our own selves. Even our closest person, the one we love the most, do not know everything about us. I believe that it is okay. We do not have to know everything about a person to be able to love them. People are allowed to keep secrets if they do not involve the other person or if they would hurt the relationship between the people involved.

So for me, Acanthus is a flower that signals how humans live. It signifies our strength (immortality) to continue on even when something should have extinguished our fires (kill us). It shows how people protect their cores (inner secrets) even to those closest to them, not always because of evil but because sometimes, there are art that is meant just for our eyes only.