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Given our somewhat sluggish arrival of Spring this year it's taking a while for the various plants, trees and bushes to wake up from their wintry slumber. The lilac bushes are finally starting to bloom, which is always special to me. Some of the bushes here are taken from ones from where I grew up and predate me. The smell takes me back to my youngest days the instant it hits my face. When I came home from work today it was a sunny, clear day for a change, and I walked over to the big old bush to bury my nose into the blossoms. I knew very well what was going to happen. As I inhaled, memories of my early childhood came flooding back, all those good times, and, most of all, memories of Mom. I bawled my eyes out.
Of all the senses, the sense of smell elicits the greatest reactions in the human brain relating to memories. It's a purely chemical process, not at all different than in (other) animals, a product of millions of years of evolutionary process yet relatively unchanged in that time. It's a raw, basic process geared towards survival instincts and self preservation. But it has a wonderful emotional aspect as well. And I am very thankful for it. Especially now.
Of all the senses, the sense of smell elicits the greatest reactions in the human brain relating to memories. It's a purely chemical process, not at all different than in (other) animals, a product of millions of years of evolutionary process yet relatively unchanged in that time. It's a raw, basic process geared towards survival instincts and self preservation. But it has a wonderful emotional aspect as well. And I am very thankful for it. Especially now.
