Monday, May 22, 2006
Olfactory Response
Every time I smell carnations, I think of funerals. When I was around 6. my great-grandmother passed away and I went with Mom and my grandparents to Mississippi to go to the funeral. My dad wasn't with us because his grandfather passed away around the same time. I remember going to the viewing but not the funeral - but that was enough. It was the first time I had seen a dead body. Anyway, the smell of carnations was overpowering to my 6 year-old nose - they must have been in the casket spray. So to this day, the smell of carnations is associated with funerals to me.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
I'd forgotten about how strong carnations smell! My sister used to love carnations!
I don't know if I've had many carnations around, but I can see how the smell would trigger that memory.
I've never cared much for carnations, probably because I'm very sensitive to smells and that one is so strong! I'm sorry you have that connotation with them though.
That kind of memory is hard to shake and a carnation is a common flower so you must think of that often. Good post!
Apparently the sense of smell is the most powerful trigger to memory responses. This is a great example.
Post a Comment