The power of a smell

They say that the power of smell is the most powerful of senses.

Tod: "Who is 'they'?"

I doesn't matter!

Everyone knows the smells that take them back. Every one is tied to a memory or a feeling. The other night I had one of these experiences. It is a smell that not only takes me back to a time in my life, it is such a happy memory, a tie to my family, that there is nothing else like it.

It is in the process of making our family's recipe for Gumbo that I get this smell. After making the roux and adding the vegetables to it, they start to cook a little bit. This is my favorite smell in the world. It is not something I can describe with words.

It is something we always enjoyed eating as kids and it is a tie to my heritage. It binds me to the Grandmother that I don't remember because it is something that she used to do much the same way. It binds me to my daddy who is my taste tester and whose approval is the ultimate reward for me.

There are several of these memories for me, and I know there are for you as well. I would love to hear your stories, tell me about your favorite smell and where it takes you!