November in Bloom: Flowers, Loved Ones, and Filipino Traditions
Flowers from Indang, a familiar kakanin, and the acts of care that keep memory alive.
In an EMV Flower Farm greenhouse, a grower carries freshly harvested roses. Nearby, chrysanthemums are gathered and prepared by hand. These are quiet moments in a flower’s journey, but during Undas they lead toward something deeply personal: a family carrying blooms to someone they love and miss.
Across the Philippines, the first days of November bring families together to remember the departed. Graves are tended, candles are lit, prayers are offered, and stories find their way back into conversation. Some families spend hours together at the cemetery; others remember loved ones from home. What they share is the wish to make that remembrance visible.
Flowers for remembrance
Flowers are one way to do it. At our farm in Indang, white and golden chrysanthemums fill the greenhouse rows, alongside roses in many colors. Once gathered and arranged, those blooms take on meanings only the families who carry them can fully know. A bunch may recall someone’s favorite color. A single stem may simply say, We came to remember you.
Mother Estrella’s suman
For our family, Undas also has a taste: suman sa lihiya, known to us as sumang dapa. It is a traditional delicacy of Indang and was a favorite of our beloved Mother Estrella during this season. She prepared and offered it to others while she was with us. Since the beginning of EMV, we have continued that tradition with our customers.
Sharing the suman is a small act, but it holds a great deal. It recalls her care for people, the warmth of home, and the traditions she left us. Each year we prepare it, we have another chance to tell her story—and to keep doing something kind in her name.
That is the heart of Undas. Flowers cannot take the place of those we have lost, and food cannot bring back a family gathering exactly as it once was. But a bloom offered with care, a familiar kakanin shared, and a story spoken aloud can help us feel close to the people who shaped our lives.
This season, as our team gathers flowers and our family shares suman once more, we remember Mother Estrella with gratitude. We hope these simple traditions give others room to remember their loved ones, too.