They Live between Two Signs

Flower arrangement traders are surviving even though the pandemic has affected their business. Now, their business is supported by demand for flower arrangements for mourning.

KOMPAS/ADITYA DIVERANTA

Workers are finishing bouquets at the Rawabelong Flower Market, Palmerah, West Jakarta, Monday (5/10/2020). During the Covid-19 pandemic, condolence flower boards dominated orders almost every day.

Flower arrangement traders are surviving even though the pandemic has affected their business. Previously, they took many orders for joyful greetings. Now, their business is supported by demand for flower arrangements for mourning.

The Covid-19 pandemic has made trading activities in the Rawa Belong Flower Market, West Jakarta, quieter. The demand for flower arrangements for the expressions of joy is getting smaller. If there is now an increase in orders, it is the flower arrangements for mourning, as seen on Monday (5/10/2020). That morning, Wawan, 50, one of the flower arrangement traders at the market, hurriedly prepared two bouquets to be delivered at noon.

Since August until now, almost all of the flower arrangements contain sorrow messages.

He was grateful that people still bought his flower arrangements. This means he can provide for the needs of his family during these difficult times. However, in reality Wawan was sad because in the last two weeks, almost all of the flower arrangements ordered by customers were to express their sorrows.

Orders for arrangements for “congratulation & success”, “happy marriage”, or other expressions of joy are getting nearly nil. “Since August until now, almost all of the flower arrangements contain sorrow messages. When it\'s quiet, yes, it\'s very quiet. Whenever there are orders, their contents are always news of sorrow,” said the shopkeeper for Alfinza Florist.

Also read: Covid-19 Deaths Surpass 10,000

Wawan\'s remarks show a bit of the situation experienced by the flower arrangement traders during the Covid-19 pandemic. That Monday, only seven shops were open out of dozens. The second floor of the market, which was usually busy with the flower arrangements for various events, is now dominated by mourning arrangements.

This kind of situation is out of the ordinary. Usually a larger number of orders for the flower arrangements were for wedding reception or corporate events. A few days before the weekend, for example, Wawan\'s shop could usually serve up to 50 flower arrangements for wedding receptions per week.

KOMPAS/ADITYA DIVERANTA

A worker paints a bouquets of condolences at the Rawa Belong Market, West Jakarta, Monday (5/10/2020).

Different from the congratulatory flower arrangements that were usually ordered several days in advance, the recent orders for mourning flower arrangements often came suddenly and their number was not stable. Sometimes Wawan only received one order, while other times dozens of mourning arrangements were received per day from relatives of businesspeople, celebrities, or officials who passed away.

In April, Wawan often tried to get information on the history of the death of the deceased to whom flowers were sent. Most of the orders turned out to be intended for the deceased who were positive for Covid-19. Since August, he no longer searched for the history of the deceased so as not to make him think too deeply about it.

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The life and death of selling flower arrangements, which now depend heavily on other people\'s grief news, has also made a number of the sellers nervous and tired. The reason is that it makes them increasingly hear the news about people who die.

As of 5 October, 11,253 people in Indonesia have died from Covid-19. In Jakarta, 1,772 people died with a positive status for Covid-19.

Dayat, 25, a flower arrangement seller at Rawa Belong Market, has been getting used to receiving mourning flower arrangements since May. In one week in July, he realized almost all the flower arrangements he made were for mournful news. "When I finished work, I just realized that all the flower arrangements were delivered for the dead. I was horrified, but since this is my job, what can I do?" said the resident who comes from Lampung.

Also read: 200 Needless Deaths

A similar situation is also felt in a number of other flower markets. The business of Bahrudin, 50, a flower arrangement seller at the Cikini Flower Market, Central Jakarta, is now depending on the news of someone\'s death. A week ago, he received two orders for flower arrangements and all of them with messages of grief.

KOMPAS/ADITYA DIVERANTA

Workers complete a bouquets of condolences at Pasar Kembang Rawajati, South Jakarta, Friday (2/10/2020). During the Covid-19 pandemic, wreaths of sympathy dominated orders every day.

The yellow mourning alphabet and dark board background are now prepared to serve sudden orders. "We are ready when we receive orders of condolences. If there are orders since early morning, I no longer ask about the cause of death," he said.

Because being so accustomed to orders for the mourning flower arrangements, Furqon, 25, tended to ignore the history of the deceased to whom the flowers were sent. This flower arrangement seller at Rawajati Flower Market, South Jakarta, only hoped that he and his colleagues will not get sick and die.

Worry

A pandemic involves a very fundamental issue, namely human life.

Despite being able to survive, they are worried because the news about the sadness of death seems to be getting closer. Wawan, for example, was worried because last July he delivered flower arrangements twice in a row to the same house in Klender, East Jakarta. He heard the news of a young man who died and a day later it was followed by the news that the young man\'s father had also died.

People have become increasingly anxious due to the news of the lack of burial ground for deaths due to Covid-19. In Jakarta, on 30 September, the number of remaining grave plots in Pondok Ranggon public cemetery was only 700 (Kompas.id, 30/9/2020). "With such a situation, who is not afraid? It\'s also saddening if family members or relatives die because of Covid-19," said Wawan.

Wawan\'s anxiety was in line with the survey on Community Behavior during the Covid-19 Pandemic from Statistics Indonesia (BPS) last September. About 50 percent of the total 90,967 respondents expressed concern about the possibility of contracting Covid-19.

Also read: The Continuing Struggle of Recovered Covid-19 Patients

In line with this, Sulfikar Amir, an associate professor and sociologist of disasters from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, reminded that cases of death due to Covid-19 are not just statistics. Death of people is a humanitarian issue that is also the responsibility of the government. "A pandemic involves a very fundamental issue, namely human life," said Sulfikar (Kompas.id, 6/9/2020).

If the death rate for Covid-19 patients continues to increase, it is natural for the flower arrangement sellers to also feel anxious. They do not want the flower arrangement of grief to fall on those close to them. They missed serving orders for joyful arrangements. Like what happened before the pandemic.