Thursday, August 11, 2011

Olfactory Memories

Apparently, our olfactory memories, i.e. memories that are attached to our sense of smell, are strongest. While driving up to Richmond last night, I got hit with two different, but very potent memories.

First, when I went over the river, the scent of the river and a hot night reminded me of the summer that my youth group in California stayed on house boats on a river. The boats were grounded on one side and the terrain was desert. We spent the week on speedboats and other water sports. I have a bunch of pictures from the time and it was the time in my youth that I felt closest to my childhood crush (who I did later date for the summer after high school and who I miss terribly to this day).

Shortly after, I got the whiff of honeysuckle, which always makes me think of Oklahoma since we had it growing on every fence. While I'm not entirely nostalgic about it (not in small part because I go back often), there is something about the air in the summer there that is breathtaking. It's humid and hot and thick with the smell of honeysuckle and other flowers and mints. I got a sample of it last night and I missed it some.

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