If you read romance, no doubt you’ve noticed almost every story has the hero thinking about how the heroine’s hair or skin smells. For her, in his absence, she’ll sniff his shirt or pillow. Cheesy? Maybe. But of all the senses, smell evokes the most emotion and memories.
Think about how certain odors bring back your memories. The way your grandmother smelled of talcum powder? Your dad’s pipe tobacco? Perhaps the smell of the dental office causes you to break out in a sweat even before you get in the chair!
Why is that? According to Psychology Today, the answer is likely due to brain anatomy. Incoming smells are first processed by the olfactory bulb, which starts inside the nose and runs along the bottom of the brain. The olfactory bulb has direct connections to two brain areas that are strongly implicated in emotion and memory: the amygdala and hippocampus. Interestingly, visual, sound, and touch information do not pass through these brain areas. This may be why smell, more than any other sense, is so successful at triggering emotions and memories…both good and bad.
Honey, I can smell the scent of another woman from 500 paces~~Bette Midler
Evidence of Love, written in the 80s, is about the Wylie, Texas murder case of Betty Gore. Candy Montgomery (defendant) had been having an affair with Betty’s husband, and in the book, I recall she said the attraction started because his cologne turned her on. At the time, I thought, WOW, now that’s some powerful stuff! Which goes to prove…The way a person smells is more attractive than the way they look.
So, today as we celebrate Fragrance Day, check sites that offer cologne. They might be having sales. Hopefully, nothing that will drive any of us to murder!
