When we were kids, summer oficially began on the last day of school. As an adult, you don't have the luxury of a three month vacation every year so the beginning of summer can be harder to define. But today I knew that summer had arrived when Archer was sitting on my lap and I put my nose against his neck and breathed in the smell of it - summer. Sweat, and dirt, and maybe the smell of sunshine, all mixed together to create the very distinct and pleasant smell of summertime. The only thing missing was the smell of chlorine from the pool.
I've heard that smell is the sense that's most strongly tied to memory and I believe it to be true. Sometimes when I'm giving Shelly a bath there's something about the smell of the soap that brings back the memory of Grandma Inez's bathroom. I know this is a really strange and specific thing to remember, but I do - I have a vision of the glass door at the bottom of the steps that lead upstairs, the green carpet on the stairs and then I don't remember what the bathroom looks like, but I know it smells like Shelly's soap. And I remember the big hourglass she had in the corner of the dining room, and she had a silver ball that made sounds like birds when you plugged it in. Sometimes when we went to her house she was watching a Sunday church service, sitting in her chair that swivelled around, and Mom and Dad would sit on the couch to talk. She gave us cookies and milk, we ate them in her kitchen, where she made lefsa from scratch every year for Christmas, which was celebrated at the community building in Argyle. I used to sit on Kevin's lap and sometimes Mom played Christmas songs on the piano on the stage. There was always a Christmas tree there, and the room seemed really big to me. We recently went back to that room and I realized how small it was, but that's the magic of memories - they remain unchanged for all those years, a window into how we used to see things when we were kids, before we got bigger and the world got smaller.
What smells bring back memories for you?
I've heard that smell is the sense that's most strongly tied to memory and I believe it to be true. Sometimes when I'm giving Shelly a bath there's something about the smell of the soap that brings back the memory of Grandma Inez's bathroom. I know this is a really strange and specific thing to remember, but I do - I have a vision of the glass door at the bottom of the steps that lead upstairs, the green carpet on the stairs and then I don't remember what the bathroom looks like, but I know it smells like Shelly's soap. And I remember the big hourglass she had in the corner of the dining room, and she had a silver ball that made sounds like birds when you plugged it in. Sometimes when we went to her house she was watching a Sunday church service, sitting in her chair that swivelled around, and Mom and Dad would sit on the couch to talk. She gave us cookies and milk, we ate them in her kitchen, where she made lefsa from scratch every year for Christmas, which was celebrated at the community building in Argyle. I used to sit on Kevin's lap and sometimes Mom played Christmas songs on the piano on the stage. There was always a Christmas tree there, and the room seemed really big to me. We recently went back to that room and I realized how small it was, but that's the magic of memories - they remain unchanged for all those years, a window into how we used to see things when we were kids, before we got bigger and the world got smaller.What smells bring back memories for you?
5 comments:
Hi Amy, just wanted to tell you i have been checking the sight. talk to you later, Scott.
Freshly cut crass, mixed with a slight hint of gasoline.
I know this sounds like the typical guy answer, but I really believe it's a prevelant smell sensation that many can relate too. Coming in second and third respectively: post rain air and the sent of charcoal in all it's inferno glory.
Probably the most difficult scent to describe is post rain air. Does anyone care to give it a try?
Since getting married and moving out of Mom and Dad's home, I've come to miss the smell of 'home'. Each home has it's own smell, and there's nothing like walking into the place where you grew up and created so many memories, and they all come back with the smell of home. The smell of popcorn takes me back to Sunday nights growing up when Dad would watch TV (maybe a basketball game or PBS). He would pop a huge batch of popcorn and have a big glass of chocolate milk (kind of a weird combanation looking back on it!). And us kids had our own bowl for popcorn that we were suposed to eat out of, but we all knew it was more fun to eat out of Dad's bowl!
Amy- Do you remember how Kevin used to always say 'fight nice'? I don't know why but I used to think he was so cool for saying that!
David - you're right, grass and gasoline, charcoal and rain all bring on that summer feeling. Do you think the post rain air smells a liitle like dirt? Not dirty but rich with life, blant life and animal life and bugs and worms.
Denise - I like coming home to that smell too. I remember the Sunday nights really vividly, and I remember the hunt for the little round white things. Dad knew how to keep us guessing! I had forgotten about Kevin saying "fight nice" but now that you bring it up I do remember.
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