Did a little cooking tonight, and it occurred to me that of all the senses, the one that gets the least attention is smell. The eye has art and scenery. The ear has music and birds. The tongue has food and wine. The skin has sex. But what about the nose? Are there any sensations through my schnozz that make me glad to be alive? And the answer is yes.
My favorite is the smell of rain.
Then there's the smell of mint, especially wild mint that I remember growing in mountain meadows in the Rockies when I was a boy.
I love the smell of a fresh clove of garlic when I chop it.
I love sniffing fresh ground pepper, sneeze or not.
Frying bacon is a lifelong favorite.
I love the smell of a freshly opened box of tea.
There are any number of flower smells that I love, but I particularly miss honeysuckle from my Southern days. Up here in Yankee-land, I always stop to smell the lilacs in the spring time.
Is there anything that ever wafted up your nose that made you feel glad to be alive?
I've been remembering the smell of Sweetheart soap --my mother's fav, and I liked smelling it on her. Recently, I love the smell of burning cedar and burning sage --both used as a cleansing incense here on the Reservation. They make me very happy to be alive.
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ReplyDeletePinyon pine in the Southwest is pretty wonderful, both as is, and used as incense.
ReplyDeleteGardenia on a warm summer night is a favorite. Ditto star jasmine (I think the gardenia is over for the year, but we'll have the jasmine another month or two).
ReplyDeleteGarlic, and ALL the scents that go into my spaghetti sauce (ain't braggin' but my sauce is AWESOME! Saucesome! ;-p)
Freshly ground coffee (both the scent in itself, and in anticipation of drinking it).
A few of my favorite (smelly!) things...