i smell a memory...

It is amazing to me how a simple sniff of perfume can instantly transport me back 15 years. Or how a song by Bread makes me feel like I am 4 years old, playing in my Richmond backyard, fixing up some plastic raspberries for mom's lunch. They say the strongest link to memory is scent. Well, I have to agree with 'they' on this one. Most often, cologne, perfume and lotion do the trick for me. C.K. One reminds me of my days as an Almacs girl... right down to the smock, the name tag and the scrunchie. Sometimes a man can walk past me on the street and I am sent straight to Christmas night, 1987, seeing dad in his sweater putting on his Pierre Cardin and getting ready for a night out with good friends. There may also be a random, funky smell that takes me back to the Rocky Point haunted house, I can still see the shark's teeth on that little, wooden door.
Music is just as strong in this department. Some of my most treasured memories are of my first 6 years in Richmond, living quietly in our newly-built ranch with our stone wall and our blueberry patch. So many songs from the late 70's and earliest 80's give me the ability to feel that comfort and happiness over and over again. These are times that I never want to forget. Times when your neighborhood was a community. You had dinners together. Everyone was kind and friendly. And the most important thing was my little family enjoying our first NEW home together.
There are two points I am making here: One - Alzheimer's is the scariest thing in the world to me. I can only hope that our friends and families are safe from this horrible disease in our lifetimes. I am begging this beast to not take our beautiful and happy memories away from us. And Two- if you are searching through my ipod and you come across some lame artists and songs - don't judge - those are my memories ...