Memory

Buried deep and seldom thought of
nestled far in the recesses of memory
to be evoked on rare occasions when 
a fragrance arouses the sense of recall
and you become once more the one
that can never be recaptured in this
brief lifetime, a child for whom comfort
and security reflect the sensations of
familiar taste and smells recalling trust
and reliance on the guidance of your
parents' instinctual response to your
needs, and what could be more needful
to a child than to inhale a mother's
careful and fastidious preparations in
her kitchen to feed her family long
acquainted with the menu and relishing
its appearance, its taste, its companionship
and above all the distinct, unforgettable
odours of its constituents melding into
the promise of contentment and the
bond holding fast. From youth to old
age and a sudden flood of memory piqued
with that complex and familiar fragrance
your grandchildren now know and you
acknowledge timeless through the years.