A Daily Walk

"In every walk with nature 

one receives far more than he seeks."

That's a John Muir quote, and I agree.

Every evening, I have loaded Sadie into her stroller and taken an evening walk.  There's nothing like the smell of the desert, no matter the weather.  Even plants without flowers have a "spring" smell, if you take the time .....

As I walked, I decided to try to identify different scents:  the smell of someone's Asian-based cooking wafting out their window.  A few houses later, I could smell someone's spaghetti.  The forsythia that are blooming have a scent.  The yellow flowering of a palo verde.  The drifting scent of alyssum that blooms among a bunch of weeds. 

When we get to the grassy park, the smell of fresh mowed grass along with the earthy smell of the ground as it dries after these last rains.  Even the scent of cars on the road passing carries over the grass to our side of the block. 

Our noses are amazing - sometimes a smell brings back memories, especially good memories.  For me, the smell of dill and peas growing on the vine, warming in the morning sun remind me of my grandmother's farm in Minnesota.  I didn't live there, just vacationed a half dozen times, but the smells remain in my memory. 

Just as the scent of spearmint Dentyne reminds me of the paternal grandmother; she always brought a pack to share with us kids!

When you think of all the scents that cross our path each day, it's amazing how many differing scents we can cipher out.  Don't take it for granted!  Take a walk and see what tickles your nose!