Writing Under the Influence
Olfactory euphoria and words that begin with the letter L
In years past I used to pick flowers a lot, especially during those times when I lived with a mate. There’s nothing like a vase full of wildflowers on the dining table at breakfast to show you care. It’s a loving gesture.
But I don’t do that much anymore. It’s not just because I’ve been blissfully mate-less for many years but also because I feel guilty. Flowers should remain on their plant for the bees and bugs and birdies to enjoy, right? To rudely take them out of their element seems a little bit mean. If you want to enjoy flowers, go outside! (Or plant flowers in pots on your window sill.)
But I simply can’t help myself when it comes to one particular flower. I happen to be a lascivious lover of lilacs. A few weeks late, the lilac bushes around here have finally started to bloom. They are just a couple of days away from full bloom.
I took a little walk around the neighborhood yesterday afternoon and I went up to every lilac bush I came across, sticking my nose into the flower clusters and taking a deep inhalation of their heavenly fragrance. One lilac bush had several clusters that were fully open and I cut a few of them and brought them home to put in vase. They are sitting on my desk as I type this. I am currently bathed in the smell of fresh lilac.
About every ten minutes or so I lean over to the flowers and take a very deep snort of the fragrance. So yes, I am writing under the influence…
…of lilac!
Another flower whose fragrance I truly love also starts with the letter L. I’m talking about lavender. The smell of lavender is very soothing and calming. Years ago when I allowed my bookstore to be used for meetings by local groups I would burn some dried lavender flowers to fill the store with the scent. Not many people know it but the scent of lavender actually helps with social anxiety disorders. Whenever people gather together the scent of lavender relaxes them and makes them feel comfortable in a group setting.
Sadly, I have never found any lavender growing here in my town on the Great Plains. Back in Colorado a lot of people grew lavender in their yards and there was some growing in a nearby park. At the right time of year I often went lavender hunting. I miss that.
Something else I did yesterday afternoon was plant flowers. Living in an apartment I am unable to assuage my passion for gardening. Though I have no plot to grow veggies, my landlord does allow me to have three very large pots on the porch downstairs by the mailboxes. In recent years I would have one tomato plant, some herbs and some flowers crowded into those pots. This year I decided to do all flowers.
(Pause for a lilac snort.)
After planting the flower seeds I realized that none of the flowers I planted began with the letter L. I planted morning glories, cosmos, California poppies, marigolds, and portulaca. None of those flowers are famous for their fragrance but they sure are pretty. I can’t wait until they’re blooming.
Speaking of the letter L, how about all that lava in Hawai’i? I bet that doesn’t smell very good!
Now that I think of it, there are a few other times I’ve broken my don’t-pick-flowers habit in recent years.
A few times each summer and fall I will pick two flowers on my walk over to my granddaughters’ house. The two flowers are always the same kind of flower. When I arrive for my play date I give one flower to each of the girls.
When I first did this they looked at each other in confusion. Huh? Why is Grandpa giving us a flower? That’s weird.
But over the years they have come to understand that giving someone a flower is a loving gesture and now their faces light up when they see me coming in their house with two flowers in my hand.
A couple of weeks ago I was over at their house and we were in the backyard. I was pushing the littlest granddaughter on the swing when she called out for me to stop. She jumped off the swing and went over to a clump of dandelion flowers growing in the lawn. She picked one of the little yellow flowers then ran back to me and gave it to me.
My heart utterly melted.
(Pause for a lilac snort.)
Yes, the word love starts with an L.
Well, I apologize if my rambling has been incoherently shooting off in different directions. That happens sometimes when I write under the influence.
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