Every year we visit Monsieur C to select a Chrysanthemum to put on French Boyfriend's family tomb.Whilst in the process of selecting the right one, Monsieur C asked which month these flowered in NZ and I replied that they flowered in Autumn, March/April time.He commented that many foreigners like to buy  chyrsanthemums to give as gifts and that this  is frowned upon in France as they are strictly for the cemetery.I smiled as I recalled the day my grandmother picked some arum lilies and placed them in a vase in the hall. My grandfather was very mad and told her to get rid of them at once as they were funeral flowers and had no place in the house.When I mentioned this to Monsieur C, he replied that this is not the case in France and that the French love to display these in the house.So the lesson for the day is that it is okay to give a bouquet of lilies as a gift but please do not think about giving a chrysanthemum unless someone has died.This is the chrysathemum that we finally chose as it is nice and bright, I loved the purple ones but purple is associated with death and mourning and not popular in France when it comes to cdecorating tombs. Another cultural difference as I found out when I purchased some lovely purple velvet Christmas stockings and French Boyfriend advised that we would not be using them.... So the lesson for the day is that it is okay to give a bouquet of lilies as a gift but please do not think about giving a chrysanthemum...