Last updated on April 20, 2020
I think that Oriental lilies are beautiful. A few years ago, I was very happy when a friend bought me a plant, with the flowers in full bloom. It sat on my window sill, brightening up the living room. We coexisted until I could no longer handle the scent.
There are two things I learned about these particular lilies: the pollen of Oriental lilies stain and their flowers have have a very strong smell. I had the misfortune of getting some of the pollen on a white shirt, so I learned all about cleaning the stain. The smell I couldn’t do anything about. I thought it might lesson if I removed the anthers but that wasn’t the case. In the end, I regifted the lily to a friend.
What’s that Scent?
Do you like the smell of Oriental lilies? It didn’t seem to bother my friend at all.
There are lots of other natural elements (plants, animals, springs, etc.) that have a strong smell. One that surprised me was ants. When I lived in India and in Sudan, I would sometimes get an ant infestation. My solution was to wipe down the surface and spread diatomaceous earth to try to resolve the problem. Every time I wiped a surface, squishing ants in the process, there was this distinct scent. I find it hard to describe, and I haven’t smelled it in some time. I assumed that everyone else experienced the same smell from ants, but when I’ve mentioned it to friends since, they look at me like I’m losing my mind.
I admit, I am sensitive to scents. I think that scent pollution is a problem. When I take public transport in Prague, I sometimes have to move my location in the vehicle because of strong smelling cologne or perfume. In general, I prefer subtle, barely there scents over strong, heady ones. At the same time, my smelling ability is not that sophisticated; I don’t know what people are talking about when they mention the smell of snow or rain. đ¤
Are there any things that you think have a strong scent, but other people don’t agree? Or is there something you can scent that others can?
During April, I’m participating in the writing prompts challenge from WordPress.com. Want to participate? Find the prompts here.
Funny enough I have periods when I acquire a super sensitive scent sense. It then pairs with memories so Inever say things like “it smells sweet or smells like cotton candy” .. instead i say things like “smells like going to a fair” or “smells like may” (the month we used to go to the city fair and when we were allowed to eat cotton candy.
it makes up for the most nonsense (pun intended) conversations.. but then again, this is why scent is so awesome, it brings up so many hidden memories … đ
I personally don’t have such strong associations with scent as some people do. I’ve often wondered about that!