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Cuddling The Bear And Smelling The Flowers

Among the favorite all-occasion presents nowadays are teddy bears and flowers. Given during a baby christening is a lovable stuffed toy. A wedding anniversary befits a box of sterling roses. A stuffed teddy bear plus a bouquet of flowers commemorate a birthday. It's a life-sized stuffed Koala to cuddle, with matching pink roses for a sweetheart. A fantastic housewarming present is a pair of his and hers teddy bear, plus a pot of chrysanthemums.

Giving bears and flowers as gifts don't even need any special occasion. One simply gives bears and flowers to express love, gratitude, surprise, even condolences and get-well-soon wishes. Gift giving is said to trace its origins to the birth of the human race. Historical accounts state that gifts were initially used for bartering possessions. Bequeathing landed estates as a form of inheritance also counted as gift-giving. Gifts exchanged by the upper layer of society conveyed gratitude, revitalised friendships or earned privileges.

Gifts also have hidden meanings. The Ancient Romans gave coins to signify prosperity, lamps for enlightenment during one's journey through life, and pastries for happiness. The Baby Jesus was gifted by the Three Wise Men with gifts of myrrh, frankincense and gold. Persians exchanged eggs as gifts, standing for fertility. The meaning of flowers as a gift also includes expressions of love, sincerity, strength of character, etc. etc. Standing for nurture and care are teddy bears. Also induced are feelings of warmth.

Giving flowers is a tradition that has an early history. Floral fossils have been obtained in early grave sites. In Egyptian hieroglyphics, very ancient Chinese writings and even ancient Greek and Roman mythology, accounts of giving flowers are common. Early civilizations regarded giving flowers as an effective way of communicating opinions, ideas and emotions. The Ancient Greeks believed that flowers had an affinity with the divine. The tradition of giving flowers was kept strong all throughout the Middle Ages. Sustaining the practice of giving flowers as presents alive were the French and the English.

The inspiration for the teddy bear was a hunting incident involving former United States President Theodore Roosevelt. In 1902, Mississippi Governor Andrew H. Longino invited President Roosevelt to go hunting. A black bear was tied by several attendants of President Roosevelt to a willow tree and they asked the former President to blast it. The President refused though, because he considered it very unsportsmanlike. But he ordered the bear shot down so that it would be liberated of its misery. This incident became the theme of a political cartoon.

The political cartoon, in turn, inspired Morris Michton to create a novel toy. The new plaything was a stuffed bear cub. In honor of President Roosevelt, he named his creation Teddy's bear, after the former President's nickname. Mr Michton mailed a sample of his creation to the President and acquired permission to utilise his name. A stuffed bear was also developed in Germany from the designs of Richard Steiff. In March 1903, these toys were exhibited at the Leipzig Toy Fair. Come 1906, the teddy bear craze became full-fledged. As they say, the rest is history.

Definitely, presenting teddy bears and flowers as presents is an unending custom. And did you know that there is a rose called Teddy Bear?

Article Source: GardenGap.com

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