I’ve read and been told (and sometimes, twice is enough to get the job done) that the olfactory nerves are hardwired directly into the brain and that this explains why a certain scent can trigger vivid memories. Even memories that have waited for decades, dormant in the mind, waiting for the finding of neurons and the firing of synapses can spring to life. That’s what I’ve read and been told and it certainly seems to hold true. My most recent case in point took place this Wednesday night.

After the monthly Board of Trustees meeting was finished at the college, Craig and I headed back toward Saint Joe. Two or three miles west of Wathena, we saw a harvesting crew at work in the dark. There was an eeriness about the scene, the long amber string of semi-trailer running lights glowing through the dust on the ridge and the bright stab of the combine’s headlights shining through the corn. Someone prone to such imaginings might easily have believed an alien invasion had begun. Just past them, in the low flat of the creek bottom, I caught the smell of stalk and grain, hanging in the humid air, soft and slight.

As I drew in a deeper breath and closed my eyes, I was transported in memory.

Suddenly twelve years old again, I could feel the jolt and jostle of the wagon floor beneath my feet. I heard the sounds of the tractor and the single row corn picker, steel chains turning on cogs, heavy rollers crimping off the ears and stalks crushing beneath the tires. I could taste the dust in my mouth, feel it in my throat and nose, feel the husk and hard edged kernels underneath as I caught an ear of corn that came flying from the chute back into the wagon. I watched Dad driving the tractor, right arm braced against the edge of fender, steering with his left arm, intent on the rows and every now and then looking back to see how full the wagon was. I took in another deep breath, held to the sides of the wagon for a moment and then let go.

I wonder what memories the Lord savors when he catches the sweet incense of our prayers?

H. Arnett
11/13/09