Red flag

A flower’s photo is all you need to attract shame on social media, even manure at your doorstep

You posted a picture of a red flower. You were happy to see it, you said. And share it. On social media! Seriously? What are you trying to prove? Are you trying to get yourself killed? Or friends like us? Have you even thought about us? All actions have repercussions, you know.

At first, emojis pour in. Emojis come cheap. Red hearts galore. Then, a red face – someone who’s angry. Or whose fat fingers hit the wrong key. Then a flurry of emojis with thumbs stuck up. They approve that you approve of red flowers.

Here come the comments.

Red flower. Where? This breed is not native to our country. Where are you travelling?

Five people take wild guesses about where you’re travelling to, and 3 go on to guess whom you’re travelling with. And now, the always-annoyed begin.

Why pick this poor flower? Flowers are meant to be on trees, not on social media. 

The thread weaves its way through societal moral decay, deforestation, forest fires, Greta, Elon, Mars missions, conspiracy theories. And then, it turns red.