Do You Have Any?

Do You Have Any?
I bet you do! We all probably do!

Maybe you haven’t thought about them in a long time, but if you let your memory surface them, I think they’ll appear.

The sense of smell, also known as olfaction, is the ability to perceive odors. It’s a chemical sensation that’s closely linked to taste and memory.

It is interesting to me how closely smell is linked to memory!

Think about it for a minute … many of your memories may recall a smell or odor with it!!

We have a few friends whose homes have their own smells. The smells are totally identifiable to people.

Once my children had spent the night at our friend’s house while we were away. When we came home, they had forgotten some clothing. While we were out of the house a day or two later, my friends left a bag on the front porch with the missing clothing. My preschooler, seeing a bag on the porch scampered out of the car, pulling nothing out of the bag, she turned around and said … “It’s from Ms. Brenda!” I asked her how she knew. She answered, “It smells like her house.” All my children recognized the smell. We never figured out why her house smelled like that, but it was a very yummy, pleasing smell.

Smells can evoke people, places or things.

Some smells memorialize people: The original Dove bar soap will always remind me of my grandmother. It’s the soap she used. Her bathroom diffused it. Memories tumble out of me when I smell it.

Lately, I’ve been thinking about food memories… memories of my life related to food. Smells play a large part in them.

My sweet Aunt Evaline, passed in January at age 97. She is my Dad’s sister married to my Mom’s brother. She was a wonderful baker and cook. In Pennsylvania Dutch country, that’s saying a lot! I remember watching her bake and cook when I visited. She spent a considerable amount of time in the kitchen. I learned: Much of her cooking/baking was recipe free. No words on cards. She just knew the ingredients, approximate amounts and the sight, taste she was aiming for. That astounds me.

Her daughter, Janice, is making a cookbook in her honor, which she and her Mom had discussed for years. The whole family is welcome to contribute, thanks to her. FYI, we have over 50 first cousins. For her cookbook, she’s gathering “food memories” to include. They could be memories of our grandparents, parents, or immediate family.

This sparked my walk through food/smell memory lane.

Here are a few food/smell memories of mine:

My family: “As we opened the kitchen door, after church on Sundays, a mouth-watering thick wafting smell of Roast Beef greeted us.” 

 “Christmas at Grandma Fleming’s house traditionally included ham and butter sandwiches eaten on lap trays. Cured ham from her smokehouse made them a wonderful.”

Walking in the kitchen door at Grandma and Pappy Stough’s house, the essence of a wood fire greeted us. They cooked on a wood-burning stove/oven. I never understood how the oven had a consistent temperature, but yummy dinners and desserts came out of it! (Maybe it was wood/electric, not sure)

Chicken Corn Soup. I especially remember this at Aunt Ruby’s house. I’m sure all my aunts and grandmas made it, as well as my Mom. The frozen corn from the summer garden gave wonderful flavors and fragrances.

Now, it’s your turn!!

It is so remarkable that memories store with them pieces of our senses.

Ponder it for a minute.

I’ll bet you have some!

What food memories do you have?

Do you have any smells associated with memories?

I can’t wait to hear!! Comment below!

Sniff, Sniff,

A True Story.

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