CEO, Vollmer Public Relations
Over appetizers accompanied by a really good Manhattan with my husband a few days ago, we started talking about what brought us around to who we are at our core beings. Strangely enough, we came around to how incredibly important the smells and their associated memories are in taking us back to a place that is forever etched in time.
For me, it’s the smells of incense, disinfectant and leftover No. 2 pencil shavings that every Catholic school in America still smells like. Likewise, the smell of summer is that of melting asphalt on a hot Texas August day. To this day, I can walk into any lighting shop and once again the perfume of burnt out filaments tells me that I am safe in my family’s electrical contracting shop.
On the other hand, my husband Allen immediately said it’s the smell of a first class cabin on an airplane where coffee is getting freshly brewed that reminds him of who he is and from where he’s come. No surprise, as his father was one of the guys who negotiated TWA’s worldwide routes in its heydays— he’s the only 50 something I know who actually traveled around the world on an airplane in the ‘60s ( that’s another story).
A few years ago, we were representing a national Assisted Living chain and I commented on how wonderful it smelled inside the front door. “We either bake chocolate chip cookies or pop corn every day on purpose,” my client said, “to invoke familiar, comforting smells of home.” He went on to say that research shows that our sense of smell is the last sense to leave us.
Take a moment to conjure the smells that are intrinsically a big part of who you are. The trip down memory lane is worth the time. You may surprise yourself at what surfaces as you get a better grip on what made an indelible impact along the way.
Gotta run—have to go bake some pineapple cookies . . . we always knew when mom had a good day if the bits of fruit combined with nutmeg were wafting through the house after school was out!
2 comments:
Great topic, Helen! For me it's the smell of new crayons that brings me back to the first day of school. I still have a box of 72 and a coloring book stashed away at home. Makes for a great stress reliever!
Awesome Helen Caudle Voice!! For me it is still the smell of Christmas trees, even though we had to switch to artificial trees because of childrens' allergies. Amazing how those little bottles of evergreen spray or an evergreen candle can bring back those wonderful Christmas memories. Happy Holidays to you!!
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