A Month of Simple Pleasures, Days 10 &11

Well I feel somewhat sheepish, my dear, theoretical audience.

They're all staring and judging. Especially that little one.

This is what happens when I feel accomplished about doing something daily once (nevermind the contradiction there) and then get busy. Or do things anyway. I'll try and remember not to gloat next time, so that the universe doesn't have to put me in my place. Again. Some more...

Anyway! Days ten and eleven!

10. Smelling lilacs before I see them

This is obviously kind of a seasonal thing. Since, you know, lilacs only bloom during the summer and stuff...Anyway, I love that smell, and it always makes me really happy to smell blooming flowers before I can actually see the tree, or bush, or whatever. Lilacs in particular are kind of nostalgic for me, because when I was a wee little'un, my siblings, especially my little brother, and I would play on the side of the house right next to our neighbor's lilacs, so the smell was everywhere. That was also the flowers I learned to suck nectar out of. You pull the stem off the bottom, and if you get it right, the stamens come with it, and all that's left is the petals and the nectar. You can also do this with Indian paintbrush.

It grows everywhere here during the summer, and I spend a lot of time running around like a little barefooted heathen child. Good times...

Anyway, lilac is one of my favorite smells, and it has good connotations for me, so I associate it with summer, and long, relaxed walks in the evening or middle of the night, and sitting outside, and just a general sense of comfort and well-being. There's also some enjoyment for me in finding the lilac I'm smelling.

11. Candles everywhere
This one is a much simpler explanation, I think. I just really like candles; I love the soft glow they give, and the gentle warmth, and the smell of matches and burning wicks and wax. I have a whole box of them.

One of my favorite, most restful memories so far is this one time, when I was like fourteen or so, and I lit a bunch of candles and placed them all over my bedroom. It was dark, so the only light was from this multitude of little flames, and I just sat on my floor watching them waver and glow, melting the wax they stood on, and filling up the whole room with this warm, living, yellow glow and the dry smell of fire and paraffin wax...

Of course, it wasn't long until someone barged into my room and broke the spell, but for that short time, I felt very safe, cradled in warmth and light. It was almost womb-like in it's security and comfort, as weird as that no doubt sounds.

So I guess that catches me up again. I'll try and make some time tomorrow before I go to work.