Laundry: Nostalgic Christmas Smells

I don't know about anyone else, but certain smells turn on specific memories in my brain. I can distinctly tell you when I come across the exact same smell for different events or places in my past that either were very happy occasions or very sad occasions. For example. I know, without a doubt, that whenever I smell a perfect mixture of chlorinated "softened" water, Sarasota Florida comes to mind and the smell of the water out of the faucet. WEIRD HUH!? I call these nostalgic smells. Sarasota Florida was where my grandparents lived in a mobile home park, Orange Acres, that was formerly an orange orchard. There were still orange trees on the property and another nostalgic smell that immediately brings me back to Orange Acres is the faint smell of oranges in the air or perhaps from my hands after peeling an orange. It brings me back to the times sitting out on the porch with my grandma or grandpa or my folks peeling the oranges from the tree right next to their house as we watch the sun go down amidst the palm trees. Whenever I smell these nostalgic smells I usually get a perfect mixture of contentment and longing and sadness. Whenever I get a scent of one of my nostalgic smells, I wish I could be back to that very moment, and at the same time am saddened with the fact that I will never be able to go back to that exact time.
Today sitting in class, I darn near missed 10 minutes of my professors lecture because of the "Fresh laundry" smell that was looming from my t-shirt. Normally, fresh laundry isn't exactly the most distinguishing nostalgic smell because it could bring you back to so many different occasions. But for whatever reason, this particular one, given the coming Christmas season, made me jump back to being a child living at home. Coming back from school walking back from the end of the street where the bus would drop us off and finally walking through the door where the warm house would smell of my mom's laundry adventure all day. The snow was falling outside and I would have just chilled out in front of the TV with hot cocoa and the smell of fresh laundry. Gosh, how I wished I could have just transported there that instant in my class.
The smell was overbearing and as I tried to catch it again, I slowly remembered that I was in class and my brief moment of nostalgia drifted into boredom once again.
What are these nostalgic smells and why do we get them? I guess I shouldn't lump everyone else into my paranormal sense of smell; I'll rephrase my question: Why do I get these nostalgic smells that act as a time machine in my life, shooting me to distant past experiences? I think it's God's way of gracing me with His goodness and His sovereignty. I think it's God's way of saying, "hey, remember how you aren't having the best day today? Here's a little cheer-up and a glimpse of how I love you." I think one's particular view on such instances that makes or breaks a good nostalgic smell. I have one of two choices: I could say, "this sucks... why did I have to remember that now to just be mad that I can't be back to my childhood days?" or I could say, "thank you Lord for that little bit of encouragement in a time where I was down."
So next time you smell the faint smell of diesel exhaust and are reminded of your first trip on an airplane, or the next time you smell the distinct smell of the floor wax of apparently every grade school hallway and are reminded of your first day of kindergarten; try to look at it as an aspect of God's grace in your life of having nice memories like that.

I'm becoming a seasoned "nostalgic smeller" and it always makes my day when I can encourage someone who has the same nostalgic smell that I just had by telling them, "Gosh that smells exactly like my grandpa's pipe smoke.." and they look at me and are like... "your grandpa smokes a pipe too!? I love that smell, it reminds me of sitting on his lap in his chair and asking him questions as a kid.." Memory is not a bad thing and when a smell brings one back... embrace it. ;-)

Moellerd