Many of us have deep and emotional connections to the beauty of flowers. We use them for celebrations and reverence for the ceremonies of life. We offer them as tokens of love, friendship, apology, and affection. We offer them as tribute. We have all smelled the fragrances of roses and gardenias. We have all plucked the petals off a daisy. We have all popped the little ballerina bodies of the fuchsia.

At different times in our lives, we are attracted to particular flowers. One year might not get enough cobalt blue of the iris to inspire our creative projects and connections to our god. Another year, we could fall in love with the pink tulip, which softens our hearts and readies us for love. This year we might fill our rooms with tall, vibrant sunflowers, supporting a burst in confidence to take charge of our lives. As of late, I have been intrigued by the little yellow dandelion flowers bursting out of the cracks in the sidewalks, reminding me to break through perceived obstacles and eliminate the strain from trying too hard.

On a deeper level, flowers remind us how to realize our potential from a tight little bud to a fully fragrant blossom. Flower essences interact specifically with the emotional and etheric bodies. The etheric body is often characterized interchangeably with the descriptions of subtle and auric energies. According to Barbara Brennan, the etheric body links the physical with other subtle bodies, serving as a matrix for physical growth. The aura exists before the cells actually grow.