Smells that are as good as gold

I walked out to the mailbox the other day and smelled a smell that was so memorable. The apartment next to us burned down earlier this spring, and so it has been under construction for the last 5 months. Today they had the saws out and had been cutting wood for the inside of the building. The smell of fresh cut wood was so strong in the air. It took me back home to the shed, with Dad cutting out wood projects for Mom. I closed my eyes and could almost feel Dad standing there by the saw. I tried to picture every piece of home, the oil stains and grease everywhere. A few car parts laying around on the shelves. A dog laying in the doorway, not wanting to get left out of anything. Then a cat rubs up against my leg, wanting to be held and petted. The creaking of the back door opening as Mom throws the scraps out for the dog and cats. The clanging of her scraping out the last little bits of food. Then a loud banging from inside the apartment brought me back. I was standing by the mailboxes, key in hand. I was back, and the sweet moment was over. I got my mail and walked slowly back to the house. No matter how deeply I tried to pull the smell back in, it was gone and over. A few small moments that were worth the smell.

"Gone with the Wind"

I have always loved the movies Gone with the Wind, and Scarlet. Yes, they are very long and old, but I just can't get enough. So every once in a while I like to have a day where I put them on and watch all the way through. I can remember having the flu in high school one time, and it was also Dad's day off. So he went out and did some work outside and then came in for lunch. He asked what my plan for the day was and I told him I was going to watch "Gone with the Wind." He said okay put it on, I can get some culture at least once a year. Yep- that was his sacrifice, to watch it with me. It may not seem like much to some, but to me it was so nice.