Sniff, Sniff

"Until you walk in another man's moccasins you can't imagine the smell."

And nor would you want to! Scent is the most powerful memory trigger and the reason is:

 Scent cells are renewed every 30 to 60 days. The sense of smell is the only cranial nerve (nerves that emerge from the brain and control bodily functions including eye movement, hearing, taste, and vision) that can regenerate.

Depending on where you live, there are certain scents/fragrances for different seasons.

 One of the great luxuries of Spring in the Midwest is the fresh scent of the blooming lilac trees. But you need to sniff quickly before they are gone. Here in the Chicago area a lilac bush or tree only stays in bloom for a couple of weeks. But their sweet fragrance will be etched in our minds until the following Spring. And when that next Spring comes, there I will be sniffing and searching for that sweet fragrance.

 

Now that we are in full summer tilt, the scent of colorful flowers or a freshly falling rain can either trigger a memory of summers past or help us to make new memories.

 

I used to drive into the city for work many years ago and on my regular route I would pass a candy factory. In the summer months the scent was strong and each days aroma was different. One day the air could be filled with the scent of bubble gum and the next day it could smell like chocolate. I loved the fact that each day was a scent surprise.

 

"For the sense of smell, almost more than any other, has the power to recall memories and it is a pity that you use it so little." - Rachel Carson

 

I can still recall as a kid: the smell of turkey cooking in the oven at grandma's house on Thanksgiving, or the smell of my Aunt Gert's chocolate chip cookies baking in the oven or yes, even the unfortunate smell of my clothes after a day of fishing with grandpa.

 

Scents can bring back memories, a lifetime of memories.

 

And if we don't stop and smell the roses on occasion we may pass up making memories for our future.