This morning I was reading a post on Looking For Sam about memory. He mentioned whether his memory was real or was it triggered by the images he saw in a photograph. It made me think of things that trigger memories I have. Many of my memories are triggered by smells. If you haven't read his post, you might find it interesting.

I was born outside of Paris and lived there for almost my entire first year of life. My mother would wheel my twin brother and I down to the local market almost everyday to buy the daily groceries. I don't actually remember these events but what I do remember is smelling the freshly baked bread. I was only around 10 months old at the time I left France but today the smell of freshly baked bread always makes me think of being wheeled to the store. To this day I love the smell of freshly baked bread.

Today I was taking my recycling to the basement of my building when I walked by one of the custodian's closets. Wafting out of the cracked open door was the distinct smell of a specific cleaning fluid. I have no idea what the fluid was or what it's called but I instantly got a picture of my dentist's office in my mind. Right after the smell registered in my mind and the picture was formed, I generated a frown on my face. I hate going to the dentist so this would be an appropriate reaction to the memory the smell produced.

Another aroma that triggers some pretty strong memories is cologne. I have found myself on more then one occasion buying cologne that ex boyfriend's once used (just last week). The cologne doesn't smell the same on me that it smelled on them of course but the distinct bouquet that is produced by the cologne brings back the memories, the good times, the love, the intimacy. Fortunately, these same aromas don't remind of the bad times or the endings. One of my more recent ex's used to put lotion on after a shower. When I smell that lotion now I only think of him.

Of course smells aren't the only thing that triggers memories. Songs I hear, places I go, TV shows I watch, books I see on my shelf…all of these things bring back fond memories. At the same time though, they can bring back other memories. And that's okay. Our minds are full of memories, both bad and good. Every event we engage in produces some kind of memory. We'll have them forever and they will be triggered at one time or another by some force.