A journey strewn with flowers
Weddings are closest to this veteran florist’s heart: A decorated isle (above) and a flower stand (below)
Dreaming of buying an alluring lipstick, 17-year-old Joan Perera handed over her carefully made short eats for a VIP event. But though well relished, Joan was never paid for her hard work. “How I yearned to have my own lipstick as my mother would never hear of it and it was devastating not to realize both the lipstick and the caterer’s dream,” chuckles Joan Forbes at the memory of how her adolescent dreams were shattered.
Speaking to the Sunday Times, surrounded by her pots and sprigs, the veteran florist who recently celebrated 45 years in the floral business says that endless hours of waiting to place a trunk call to Nuwara Eliya and much dreaded derailments only enriched her life! For the lady who picks the rose as her favourite flower, life’s journey though not a bed of roses has been a ‘pleasant ride,’ she says.
Having lost her father at the age of seven, Joan watched her young widowed mother taking over the reins of his business. “She was just 27 when she was widowed and one of the first women here to run a petrol station. She was also an excellent seamstress,” recalls Joan. For young Joan, the regular visit to the Bank of Ceylon City office in Fort turned out to be more than a ‘cash depositing’ affair with the attentive banker Brian Forbes having other matters in mind! “One thing led to another,” in the words of Joan, who tied the knot with Brian at 19. The couple celebrated their golden anniversary eight years ago.
Joan’s sister-in-law Lorraine who brought her London experience with her as a florist was a success here when she had to leave for Australia. Lorraine had no qualms handing over her last assignment to Joan who only had her artistic genes and the kudos she brought her class at Good Shepherd Convent Kotahena for decking up the statue for the annual feast! “I just don’t know how I did that first wedding, maybe it’s my unfailing faith in God,” smiles the devout Catholic.
Forty five years as a florist making many a bride happy, adorning VIP functions, stately homes and many more functions with no advertising Joan is indeed a wizard with flowers. So much so Mano Muthukrishna whom the florist counts amongst her most ardent fans had once said that even faded flowers arranged by Joan are beautiful! Never having run her own ‘flower shop’ it was the large garden of her ancestral residence on Kalyani Road, Pamankada which became the florist’s quarters. “All five bedrooms in the house virtually became my workshop,” chuckles the florist who never compromised on quality. Hard work and commitment had served Joan well. She is grateful to her loyal domestic help Yasawathi who is sadly no more and candidly says, “I would have never have achieved what I achieved without her. She would see to it that there was food on the table and my children were looked after.” The celebrated florist also takes pride in the fact that she has always believed in ‘raw talent’. “Over the years I have never taken trained staff. I have always discovered potential people from villages whom I have groomed and several of them who are doing so well even abroad today.”
Unfailing faith in God: Joan Forbes and husband Brian (seated in the first row) at a Thanksgiving service at St. Theresa’s Church, Thimbirigasyaya
Although weddings are closest to Joan’s heart as they are “happy moments where the young begin a journey together,” she counts the visits of the two Popes as her ‘most treasured assignments’. “What more could I have asked for,” says smiling Joan for whom it was a phenomenal experience. When the country’s first five-star ‘Intercontinental’ was opened, Joan had her hands full. Be it a five-star or a yacht, Joan did all in style. When President Tito arrived in his yacht for the Non Aligned Summit, she was called once more to lend her master’s touch. “Not a soul spoke English and the only word they could articulate was ‘juice’ which they generously kept on offering me,” chuckles Joan recollecting her experience on the yacht.
The biggest challenge in her industry is sourcing of flowers, laments Joan who urges for the clearance of red tape for an easier import mechanism. “Today the youngsters are exposed to overseas trends and, some even insist on foreign flowers in their bridal bouquets for which a more liberal importing system is vital.” From anthuriums in the 60s to the carnation in the 70s followed by orchids and the emergence of lotuses and araliya and re-emergence of trends of yesteryear, Joan has seen it all. A believer of ‘less is more’ Joan always strives to strike a balance between the décor and space. “The floral décor should not be an eye sore,” observes the florist who would not hear of artificial flowers. “They have killed the flavour of it all,” she bemoans.
A founder member of the Women’s Chamber for Industry and Commerce and the SAARC Women’s Cultural Association and also an active member of Zonta, Joan has had considerable international exposure. The florist who would not miss a single coveted international flower show, also emerged the first South Asian to have served on the panel of judges at the International Flower Show in Quebec Canada in 2002. She had also bagged several international prizes and conducts workshops.
Joan’s daughter Karen, a professionally qualified florist who has teamed up with her, keeps Joan’s legacy alive. “It is a great partnership,” beams the happy mother who looks forward to doing the bridal bouquets of her own grandchildren! An avid reader who claims to have recently developed a passion for Hindi movies, Joan whose youthful spirit doesn’t fail her quips that Shahrukh Khan is her heart throb! Essentially a ‘people’s person’ as she defines herself, Joan is a living metaphor of it as she adds with a chuckle, “look at me, 45 years in the trade and still they won’t let me retire!”
