Any time I smell patchouli, my mom is with me again. I keep some next to me when I paint so we can

[GPV]

share that time together, at least as an echo of what might have been. Now I need to find some British Sterling aftershave. That would be so comforting on those days when I really need Dad's presence and wisdom.

17 and 12 years without them, and some days I still bawl like a baby....

One of the few silver linings was asking for this group to be created, and knowing my mom was the catalyst who allowed others to seek comfort here.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. My dear GPV...How wonderful that you have that concrete reminder of your mom and you...

I had no idea that your grief over your mom's death prompted you to ask that this group be formed! That was something truly tangible and very worthwhile.

I lost a very close friend a few years back and this group provided me with the support and love that I needed.

Thank you for giving me a safe haven when I needed it most.

[GPV]

11. Thank you, Peggy!

[Nay]

2. The Vermont Country Store has British Sterling!!

https://www.vermontcountrystore.com/british-sterling-aftershave/product/83838

[GPV]

13. What a funny place to find it! Thanks!

[Karadeniz]

3. It's real! Many people have reported a characteristic odor, like a certain tobacco that only Uncle

Jim smoked.

[mopinko]

5. yes. i broke my arm when i was a kid, and my ortho smoked a cherry tobacco.

i could smell him before i saw him. back then, you could smoke in the hospital.
it was a bad break, so i saw a lot of him.

[GPV]

14. My dad smoked apple and cheery filled pipes. I saw some

tobacco candles, maybe they have apple ones out there.

[mopinko]

4. every once in a while i have olfactory hallucinations.

a sweet perfume, but i never could place it. realized a while back what it was- gardenias. my da.
the only plant i ever saw him kill, tho he kept them going for a couple years..
i need to get 1 or 2.

[PortTack]

6. Nice!!

[Warpy]

7. I never wore it during my hippie days

but I also keep a bottle of it around to remember the scent of my misspent youth.

I don't keep anything my mother wore. She was a heavy smoker whose sense of smell was blunted and who tended to overuse. Her favorites still make me a bit queasy.

Still, it's not as bad as getting onto a hospital elevator on a hot, muggy day in early July. All the newly minted interns were there, all wearing their graduation after shave and cologne, the clashing combination with a distinct undertone of eau de bug spray. By the end of July they'd all been puked on, so it didn't last long.

Patchouli is different, it reminds me of a time when I was young and thought all things were possible. I didn't know how improbable they were or that I'd spend a lifetime crushed under the fat arses of corporate conservatism and religious dumbfuckery. Still, it has the smell of freedom to me. Or maybe just the smell of youthful exuberance. It's a good one, either way.

[nuxvomica]

8. I think of my mom when I smell lilies of the valley

She liked the scent, which is quite distinctive, and wore perfume containing it when we kids were growing up so it always reminds me of her. Just like lilacs remind me of the house I grew up in because we used to have a big lilac bush on the side of the house.

[calimary]

9. I've read how scents and smells can be powerful triggers.

Seriously powerful. I believe it.

[catbyte]

10. If you're serious about finding some British Sterling...

Here you go:





https://www.ebay.com/itm/223283407347

[Farmer-Rick]

12. I quit smoking 10 years ago

But my spouse smoked until the day they died.

To this day the smell of cigarette smoke brings back great memories. I love the smell. They say ex-smokers usually hate the smell of cigarettes. But I love it....

Thanks for or starting this forum.