I was taking my cup of coffee off the maker and looked over to my wife who was in the next room, standing in front of the buffet and hutch. She had her face buried into her hands.

“Are you okay?” I asked quietly, not wanting to overreact.

I could see her eyes, just above the tips of her fingers. They were not the eyes of someone who was upset. If eyes can hold a nostalgic smile, hers were doing so.

She eased her hands away from her face, revealing something in her hands. It was white. It was crocheted. She turned her head toward me.  “The scent still reminds me of my grandma.”  She buried her face into her hands again. I could hear her inhale slowly and deeply. I could only imagine the images and memories running in her mind. Her eyes continued their nostalgic smiles.

It is good to find the scents and sounds that remind us of loved ones from the past who are still important to us today. British Sterling cologne will always remind me of my dad. There are several songs from the ‘60s that, when I hear them, I can also hear my mom humming along or singing softly under her breath. The smell of old paper reminds me of relatives in Mississippi whose names I don’t know, but I remember the smell of their house when we visited – I was about five.  The list of reminders is long. I could list about 100 things that immediately remind me of my parents, friends, and more; I am sure you could, too. My oldest son has a woodworker’s shop that smells of sawdust.  My wife’s memories of helping her grandpa make things when she was a child are stirred by the aromas in my son’s workshop.

We need to be present in moments in order to retrieve memories. Remain open; connect to the past and those you love.