Life and Death

21 January 2018


The other day, yesterday to be exact, I visited Kew Gardens with my friend and flatmate Nazani. I had seen on Facebook a few months ago about an exhibition at Kew Gardens and it'd been on my list to visit ever since. It was a silly day to visit since it was pouring down with rain. Although, there was something beautiful and relaxing walking around a large, quiet park listening to the light raindrops hitting the umbrella and trees.

The exhibition, Life in Death by Rebecca Louise Law, showcases a collection of plants and flowers that have been dried for over six years. The flowers and plants are hanging like garlands from the ceiling. It sounds beautiful and it was! All the flowers were so delicate and preserved exactly how they were when they were alive.

Walking around the exhibit got me thinking about both life and death. Sometimes we can spend so much time thinking about when things are going to end that we forget to live in the present. Our surroundings morph into one, they become a blur of time we don't remember. I've lost count of how many times I've cried about the time I had left.

 It led me to think that if we spent our time appreciating every second and every moment, then we wouldn't be so upset when it was over. Instead, we'd smile at the memories and the time that was shared. The present is called a present for a reason. It has so many gifts that we should appreciate and not overlook because we're too blind to see it. There's beauty in life, in the little moments, and in everyone and everything. The exhibit shows how beautiful every living thing is and that there's life in death and it's been frozen in time to make us see it clearly.









Love, Aoife x