Nostalgia and the Olfactory Bulb

Today I stumbled upon the perfumed oil that Seif bought me in Egypt.  The scent is amazing, exotic, with a hint of rose.  I opted for this scent this morning instead of my usual perfume.  All day long, every time I moved, I caught a whiff of this perfect combination and was transported in memory back to exciting Cairo; the busy streets, the friendly people, and the tricky salesman that conned us in to buying this very perfume.  He told me that it would make the men go wild, put some on my wrist, and made Seif smell it.  He wasn’t going to let us leave until we bought something.  He made us hot tea, told us to sit down and get comfortable, and showed us pictures of his “father” with Muhammad Ali.  Funny how all of the other perfume sellers had the same picture.  I guess Muhammad Ali really loves perfumed oil.  He sure seems to make the rounds to all of the family owned businesses in Cairo.  Oh yea, and that guy in all of those pictures sure has a lot of kids!;) I LOVED Cairo.

Isn’t it funny how a scent can trigger something locked deep in our memory? It’s not just a matter of conjuring up images, but it can stir the same feeling within us that occurred at the time of the event.  Sound and taste can do the same thing, certain songs can take us back to a time in our lives that we haven’t thought about in years.  The taste of raspberries takes me back to my childhood, a little girl running around my great-grandparents’ yard, rose bushes lining the driveway, and raspberry bushes along the fence. I remember their house clear as day, I remember them.

I’ve committed myself to writing these memories down.  Who knows when, or if these mental “cues” will occur again?  Perhaps my written words will trigger the same feelings and memories as the smell of perfumed oil, the song Grandpa by the Judds, the taste of raspberries, or the echoing sound of feet hitting the pavement.  This is a weird one but I assure you, there is a story that I may have to share on another day. 

The human brain is truly an amazing thing. I appreciate it more and more as I delve deeper in to my studies (ah, the good ol' limbic system).  Sometimes I'm blown away by the things that suddenly come back to me when I haven't thought of them in years. I've been a little overwhelmed lately and today was a great day for nostalgia. Now I better get back to my studies. The nervous system is covered and aced (thank you!), now it's on to cardiovascular. Wish me luck on this one peeps, just the look of it is giving me palpitations. Cheers!