Monday, December 8, 2014

The Senses

Its amazing how connected our senses are to each other. Ever so often, a taste or a smell will come along that will flash a memory into my mind. Out of all the pastries I grew up around due to the talent of my mother, the taste of fresh tart dough brings back the strongest memories of sitting on top of the flour bin in the little kitchen of Chocologue. Chocologue was the my mom's second baby, a pastry shop she opened in down town Norfolk, Virginia shortly after moving there when I was 2 years old. Out of all the memories and events I am told happened during the year the shop was open, I remember only a handful of things.

I remember the lights. The lights were glowing orbs of multiple colors. I remember the tiles on the front of the counter that my mom had so intricately painted by hand that again exist today in Popacuchu, her new baby here in Cuenca. Most of all, I remember the tart dough. When I was a child it's sweet taste to later be filled with lemon filling and white chocolate ganache was the best thing in the world. The other taste I could never forget, was my constant urge to like the chocolate covered coffee beans. Being 3 years old, chocolate was a delight, but coffee was a taste a had not yet acquired. Even so, I would attempt to enjoy the chocolate covered coffee beans every few days or so to no avail. The beans I always found at every center filled my mouth with a bitter and unsatisfying flavor. Did I ever give up on my attempts to enjoy this chocolate bean? As I recall, never.

Some smells have the ability to bring back memories I didn't even know where there. Earlier this evening as I entered the elevator with my dogs, I joined a man on his way up as well. Carrying his briefcase and proudly wearing a pinstriped suit, the combination of his cologne and whatever brand of cigarette he had been smoking flashed a memory of my dad's first apartment after the divorce of my parents. This smell wasn't a bad smell to me, just a familiar one. I remember the big red couch that sat in his living room, the constant sound of SpongeBob on the TV that entertained me for hours on end, and the taste of the toothpaste he used that I had never seen in anyone else's house... ever.

The man I encountered in the elevator earlier tonight was very polite and got out on the 2nd floor. During the time that I enter the lift, smelled his cologne and cigarette combo, let him out on two, and made it to my own floor was the time that all of these thoughts crossed my mind. There are many memories inside my head that I enjoy remembering, sometimes they just need a little kick. The smells and tastes that surround me hold the keys to unlock the wonders located in my subconscious. When I do have the privilege to be reminded of when I was a child, I enjoy every second.

1 comment:

  1. You will find as you travel the rocky road of life that smells and sounds as well as certain sights will continue to bring back memories. As you've already noted, some are sweet, some may be sour and others will be bittersweet. Continue to savor the world around you, building those memories.

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