Scentimental memories

I just recently purchased a rose scented cuticle cream from Avon. Upon opening the small tin container, I was immediately bombarded with memories of my childhood and my auntie Sets. She always wore Rose Milk lotion on her hands and face...the heavenly, delicate fragrance of roses always around her. Of course, I looked on line within minutes to find out where I can purchase Rose Milk lotion...it seems a lot of people have the same memories...most stores no longer carry it and some on-line vendors are out of stock. It's amazing how certain scents can take us back in time to specific moments in our lives. The fragrance "Pleasures" by Estee Lauder will forever remind me our my wedding day. I received the perfume from a dear friend as a bridal shower gift...she remembered how much I loved the scent. I woke up the morning of our wedding and "layered" shower gel, lotion and perfume. The sweet, romantic scent stayed with me all day and night, forever being a lovely reminded of one of the most significant days of my life...Whenever I smell fresh celery, I think of the Saturdays when my grandpa would take me to the grocery stores along his delivery route...I would sit in his truck during the bumpy ride and look at the buildings we passed, searching for the familiar clues that our destination was close. We would always have some type of fresh fruit at the last stop, sometimes a peach, other times an apple. He would patiently peel the fruit with his pocket knife and we would share the treasure. The smell of the ocean reminds me of the days our entire family would go fishing off the Redondo Pier...I got car sick once and threw up in my auntie's hat. My brother and I would run around the pier looking for discarded hooks and line to set up our own fishing stations. I vividly remember helping my grandmother de-scale and gut the fish to take home for dinner. Even back then the sight of blood and gore fascinated me. The smell of burning incense reminds me of my maternal grandmother praying at her home altar for the husband she had lost so many years ago. I would watch her with adoration as she lit the incense, stuck a small mallet against a brass bowl gong on a silk pillow and place her prayer beads in her hands. Those beads hang in a place of honor amongst my knick knacks and collectibles. This dedication and devotion I observed was so impressive to me as a young girl, I learned to love and respect a man I never knew. And I remind myself every day, in my hustle and bustle life of appointments, treatments, shopping, crafting, etc....take time to stop and smell the roses....and everything else too! :)