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.