記憶中夏天的甜香

Have you opened a new box of crayons lately？ That distinctive scent is like no other， and the moment it meets your nose， it's as if you've been transported back to second grade. The scent and the memory seem inexplicably1） intertwined2）.

Researchers tell us that specific scents can evoke powerful memories. On the farm， every season has its own distinct set of scents and associated memories， but I think the most memorable scents belong to summertime. To me， childhood summer memories come flooding back the moment I smell new-mown3） grass. In my mind's eye， I can see my grandfather mowing the farm yard. I can hear him calling Rocky—his devoted dog—and I can see her run to him along the driveway with joy.

The scent of potato salad takes me back to my family reunions—tables overflowing with picnic fare and surrounded by crowds of relatives. I can hear my great aunts singing around the piano； I can hear my uncle， directing the activities with an entertaining air of authority.

Even something as ordinary as the scent of wet laundry can take me back to my childhood summers. My grandmother taught me to hang laundry on the clothesline， along with the little time-saving tricks for conserving clothespins4）. After we'd finish the laundry， we'd go pick wildflowers to dry for winter. The scent of drying tansy5） reminds me of those days.

And， to me， summer smells like toast. As a child， my favorite summertime breakfast was a plate of almost-burned toast， prepared to my precise specifications by my grandmother. While the toast was still hot， she'd spread a generous layer of peanut butter from edge to edge， and that creamy goodness would melt and seep6） into the gaps of the toast. And I would sit in her kitchen and drink milk and listen to the joyful banter7） of my grandparents as I soaked in the goodness of the summer and the sunshine and—yes—thesentimental8） scent of slightly burned toast.

每個人記憶中的夏天都有獨特的氣味，也許是剛割過的青草散發的清香，也許是大雨過后泥土濕潤的氣息，也許是午后玩耍時突然聞到的從自家廚房飄出的香氣……那是童年的氣息，是家人的氣息，更是難以忘懷的回憶的香氣。endprint