Strong Smells

By -

 I've often joked that I have no sense of smell. I mean this in the non-literal, I have allergies at least three seasons of the year sort of way, but still, my sense of smell is generally bad enough that the idea of anosmia doesn't sound nearly as horrifying to me as perhaps it did to others. It was interesting that Ackerman described smell as a sort of constant thing that you cannot stop, because for me, it doesn't feel that way at all.

The smells I do actually sense are usually the strongest, which in general has not left a favorable impression of the sense. When I think of strong scents I tend to think of skunks (I didn't realize the badness of which was debatable), perfume (not a fan), and my dog farting (with a frequency that is honestly impressive). 

Probably, I don't give my sense of smell enough credit. The smell of a campfire brings me back to camping as a child. The smell of lavender reminds me of an acquaintance in high school who went around with a bottle of it before a major exam, spraying it on people's wrists and claiming it was calming. I wouldn't say it was particularly calming, at least not for me, but it was definitely kind. It was interesting to see what Ackerman had to say about smells and memory, because for me, it seems that while the bad scents are much more general, the good ones tend to have memories attached. When I smell a skunk, I don't remember every or any other time that I've smelled a skunk, but lavender still reminds me of the sense of camaraderie among a group of high school kids certain they were all about to fail an exam.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Amidst the Pandemic

By -
Image
I think having the opportunity to take Smells and Bells and then experiencing a worldwide pandemic came with good timing. Oftentimes, we’re so rushed to get from one one place to another that we miss out on what happens around us. We’re so accustomed to the lifestyle of being busy that it has become the norm for many of us. However, the pandemic has forced us to slow down. We’re now appreciating everything that we had previously taken for granted and noticing things in our surroundings that we have never noticed before.  Take this quarantining/social distancing as an opportunity to be more aware of what you experience through the senses. I don’t think my senses have necessarily heightened over the past 5 weeks, but I am actively making the choice to pay more attention to what I see, hear, touch, taste, and smell. I like going on nature/mindfulness walks and basking in the sunshine out in my backyard. This morning, I could hear a faint noise from the wind, hear the birds chirpin...
Read more

Food in the Afterlife

By -
Image
In Religion in the Kitchen: Cooking, Talking, and the Making of Black Atlantic Traditions , Perez talks of Ashabi and her grandchildren providing food offerings to their ancestors. This immediately reminded me of the practice of food sacrifice in early China. I've taken Chinese language classes for about 7 years now and in one of the lessons, we learned about food as well as the history of food in Chinese culture. Ashabi and her grandchildren would give food offerings to their ancestors every day. This included nine beverages (coffee, liquor, and water mixed with sugar and molasses) and nine square pieces of coconut topped with red palm oil and guinea pepper. The offerings would also include whatever food was dropped on the ground. In their house, food dropping on the floor signified more than it would in common American households. It signified that the ancestors wanted that food and had willingly made it fall to the floor. They also used dishware that had been chipped which was...
Read more