Nosetalgia - The Power Of Scent

The best remembrance of memory is when it's locked and connected through certain smell or odor; this can be recalled easily by the mind when that scent comes up again in the future.

Ever wondered how the scent of burning firewood on a cold weather, brings back nostalgia in the days when you put your hands together to get it warmed during the early hours of morning by directly putting your hands closer in the burning fire of the "dalikan" - an Ilokano term for a stove, a hand-made potted clay which is used for heating, cooking, and even warming your face, body, or hands.

My Lola used to wake us up along with my cousins when we were kids as early as 5:00 am during the ber months in our province. She would let us taste the "siggit", a rice soup which was lifted from the vapors of the boiling rice being cooked from the stove.

Alongside the burning firewood in the stove, we would place our hands near it, close enough to warm the chilling morning December breeze.

Dalikan - Stove (image courtesy of Ilokano Ak Facebook)

 

How about the scent of a freshly cut grass? It suddenly transports you back in time when you get to be early going to the school grounds during elementary days, prepping for a flag ceremony - with the fresh feeling of morning dew, smelling the wave of this sharp but fresh smell of grass all around. 

It was indeed reinvigorating - when you suddenly smell this pungent odor of grass, it seemed like you're back in time enjoying the greens and sceneries of non-polluted environment.

There's a plethora of examples in the power of scent -- its ability to trigger emotions and memories, locked up long ago, suddenly bringing it back in a snap, as if you are there in that moment in time again.

This property of scent is so magical that even a vague whiff of certain smells, will evoke a strong visual images in our minds and taking us back to a fond memory - may it be a lulling craving of good-old-days happenings, or some tragical moments in our lives.

According to research, the strong connection of memory to odor is primarily attributed to having access of the central brain structures such as the amygdala and hippocampus, which are involved in regulating emotions and emotional memories. Compared to the other senses, the sense of smell is so potent in activating the brain wires to call these memories tied to specific smells when those memories were made.

So, the next time you want to have a memory imprinted, couple it up with a strong odor -- surely, this will trigger those brain circuits to come rushing alive, transporting you back in time.

--Othello