Soldiers Like Flowers

Want to know the secret of creativity?

It’s in this quote from New English Third by Jones Rhodri.

“The soldiers, in their uniforms on the hilltop, looked like flowers.”

At first glance it seems absurd. How can soldiers be like flowers? Flowers are beautiful and colourful and soldiers represent war and violence. They seem direct opposites. But if you think again, soldiers at war or off to war are like flowers; they are short-lived. This is a quote we were taught as kids in school a good thirty years ago. This passage jolted me and the explanation opened my eyes.

In the world of marketing and advertising we chase creativity and innovation, often talking about what we know not of. Creativity is linking two things in a natural way but also in a way that is not obvious. It’s that simple. Innovation is creativity with a problem to solve. There you have it, straight from my mouth but the words are part of a message that took over 30 years to reach you.

Tyrone Tellis is a marketing professional working in Pakistan. tyrone.tellis@gmail.com