Happiness via Smell
"The pleasantest things in the world are pleasant thoughts, and the great art of life is to have as many of them as possible." ~Montaigne
Smell has the most powerful memory of all senses. Our olfactory nerve is close to both the emotion and memory centers of our brain. So when you smell fresh-baked apple pie, you may delight in its smell, but more important is what it evokes for you. For me, fresh-baked apple pie reminds me of grandma’s kitchen, apples picked from the backyard apple tree, and her rolling pin (which I now have). Secondary to those memories, is the cinnamon-cardamom smell which reminds me how good apple pie tastes.
Smell has power over our mind. How often do you walk down an urban street with a friend, and pass by a bakery or chocolate shop without remarking about the amazing smell? You say something, don’t you?
You can’t help it, can you? Smell interrupts your conversation, and sends your thoughts in a completely different direction.
The ultimate power of smell is noticeable when we observe how it changes our mood. In each of the examples above, do any of them put you in a bad mood? No, I didn’t think so. How about the sweet smell of strawberries, dripping red with ripeness? What about fresh cut grass? Pine trees at holiday time? The salt-water smell of an ocean beachside? These are all good mood smells aren’t they?
What odor, when it wafts by your nose, makes you smile? Which food smell changes your thinking from, “I’m hungry,” to “let’s go eat _______?”
The next time you feel down, remind yourself of these good mood smells. If you want to evoke smell memory more regularly, create a vision board of these smells of photos cut from magazines. Just seeing an apple pie or crashing ocean waves may charge your memory and put you in a good mood.
--Tina Su
Photo by: Karen Dorsett
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