Elders Wellbeing 4 – Smell

To start the day, Peter and Rachel, taking advantage of the perfect spring weather conditions (warm and wet) seeded the land with some seeds collected last year, and some vintage bean seeds (they have two chances)

We began smell by admiring a dogs sense of smell. Giving Bobji a challenge to find the sausage, she did in both cases sniffing out when she got close. So began the discussion what is the difference between a dogs sense of smell and our human sense. Well it has a longer nose, was suggested. Here’s someone who knows: (ie the internet)

What do dog noses have that humans don’t? They possess up to 300 million olfactory receptors in their noses, compared to about six million in us. And the part of a dog’s brain that is devoted to analyzing smells is about 40 times greater than ours

https://phoenixvetcenter.com/blog/214731-how-powerful-is-a-dogs-nose

A nose meditation breathing in one nostril and out with the other. Here is the practice of Neti, nasal irrigation.

Theo suggested that smells above all our senses, were connected to memory. So we recalled our smell memory.Sunday roast at my aunts, probably chicken, and the smell of fairy liquid used for the washing up afterwards, still reminds me of this moment.
School Satchel leather. And chrysanthemums in St Andrews Hall, Norwich. Wild lavender in France. Rose – which took us to Turkish Delight.
Fendi Perfume + Casterol

Petrol – filling up at the petrol station . Geraniums at the convent and the nun who propagated them.
Blue Grass – a perfume worn by my mother
Petrol on hot burning tarmac on Montreal streets
Pine needles in France and Canada
Smell of money!
Lilly of the valley (and Blue Grass)
TCP – used on all those scratches – which i became so fond of I used to open and smell the bottle
We slaughtered pigs and used all parts, smoked brains, or liver. The smell of bacon.
I’ll call you Lilly of the Valley if you call me Carrot Tops – a wonderful story from R
Vick which was rubbed on us when we had a cold
Beeswas
Midnight in Paris from Woolworth
Freshly cut grass
Powdered chalk which I used when training as a gymnast
A bottle of Figi perfume, which when opened, I was 17 again.

Kali says: My favourite smell is freesia. And the inside of my grandmas old binoculars case which took on the smell of her cupboard or rather the polish she used.
My most unpleasant smell is presently the only smell I can think of – black seed oil

But it is usually any artificial smell like man’s aftershave and some perfumes , I find it so overwhelming as it’s so sickly strong even a little of it I find it hard to think or concentrate … and not in a good way ..maybe I have the nose sensitivity of a dog.

We walked around the wood, and found some scents. Pippa found a narsisi for us to enjoy the scent of.

Blind smelling:

a. Cloves
b. Rosemary
c. Wild garlic
d Detol
e. Rose shampoo
f. 4711 Perfume
g. Cointreau
h. Laylandii wood
i. Vinegar

We drew each others noses

We ate Hot Cross Buns, and walked over the forest floor to our chariots.

I was gifted a goose egg.

Here’s how the nose works