tysolna | The smell of bonfires (Reply)

Through the open windows, smells of burning wood drift in. Easter bonfires in the garden next to ours light up the night. The smell of burning wood reminds me of so many things, the old stoves in my grandmother's house, night trips through the woods as a kid, roasting marshmallows over an open fire on some camping ground in Nevada.

Smells are funny things, they seem to have a direct uplink to your memory. Sometimes, this direct uplink seems to bypass one's own memories and head straight for ancient subconscions recollections. Take the smell of freshly-baked bread. I heard recently that a trick to sell a house is to have the smell of freshly-baked bread in it, as it evokes feeling of comfort and home. Try walking past the open door of a bakery without unconsiously smiling at the smell.
Smell is a much-neglected sense. We focus on vision, hearken to hearing, but smell? Yet, there are pleasant smells that we remember or actively seek out. The smell of cooking, of flowers, or incense, the scent of your lover on last night's bed sheets, perfume - do you remember the smell of a close person's perfume, or hand cream? Do you walk along, and are suddenly stopped by a smell which you know, but can't remember why?

The smell from outside has changed; someone is holding sausages on a stick into the fire. And this smell makes me hungry. I'm off to catch me a woolly mammoth.