What does home smell like? Fresh laundry, clean sheets, coffee, baked chicken in the oven. And so much more. Every home has a distinct smell, and perhaps because I have an oversensitive nose, I find the scent of home emotional.
Years ago when my dad did pastoral visits in the afternoon, my mom could tell him whose home he'd been to when he walked in their door for supper. I guess noses are hereditary.
More than smell, home feels like rest, even on the busiest day. Which today was not by choice. Sitting at the table this morning we simply watched the sun play games with the clouds across the yellow maple and red Bradford pear trees out back. The apple tree stands starkly naked and the forsythia are beginning to shed across the side. The tall blue spruce remains a sentinel to northern winters. The lilies and snapdragons are long dead and the pots of flowers drooping from the frost. Autumn, crisp and clear, fresh, and sweet smelling.
Driving across the middle of New England yesterday, stopping briefly to see my grandparents' home, we were surrounded with brilliant color and lovely views of mountains. But home, flat and middle of the country, is a welcome treat.
Little ones are playing in the cul-de-sac out front, not yet ready to don costumes and go door to door for Halloween. The grands want Poppa to come join them to traverse their neighborhood. The candy basket is ready on the front washstand. Another smell -- chocolate. Buy the candy you like yourself and you won't mind the leftovers...
Smell of home. Most of all it's a fragrance of contentment. That's the best smell in the world.
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