Autumn is the season of sense-based mindfulness. Okay, that may just be my opinion, but I intend to argue it fanatically. Everything, five senses-wise, is improved in the Fall. It’s the perfect time of year to really take some time to stop and just enjoy the now and pay special attention to the world and it’s beauty that’s all around you.
Oh hey, that sounds like a great topic for a series of five blog posts, one for each sense!
Let’s start with our olfactory faculties. The sense of smell is most associated with memory and nostalgia. Ergo, you can walk into some random building and BAM! you’re transported back to your kindergarten cafeteria. But Autumn has the best scents associated with it. Just go to the candle section of Walmart to prove this to yourself. Mulled cider, Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake, Cranberry compote – The smells that make a dwelling smell like a cozy, loving home.
The air itself smells different. While not an all together pleasant smell, go outside and into the woods. Take a big ol’ sniff and inhale the aroma of early fall decay. It’s a unique smell, a bit tangy, but oddly welcoming. It signals sunny, but cool days.
The dried leaves themselves have a earthy smell to them. This scent gets stirred up especially when you rake or blow the leaves. (And then promptly jump into the piles you make).
The smell of a pumpkin as you carve it.
The scent of mulling spices and apple cider warming on the stove.
The incense of a nearby campfire or the smell of burning leaves permeating the air.
The acrid odor of dust burning the first time you turn the heat pump on.
The smell of hay, whether in bales for feed or decoration, or spread on a freshly seeded lawn, or providing cushion in a large wagon pulled by a tractor through a field of pumpkins.
And so much more.
The scents of fall are so comforting, like a warm hug for your nose hairs.
The foods of Fall give some of the best aromas of all. Chili, stew, and other warm savory flavors floating in the air…
What a great segue into the next post on taste! Stay tuned for more.
The Loebick Mindset 