Nostalgia

Just a brief post today - I wanted to talk about nostalgia, that phenomenon of memories frequently triggered by scents and sounds.

When we think of nostalgia, we think we can only feel nostalgic for things long past; well, I have to say, that is not so. The other night, while cooking dinner and sipping red wine, I heard the "fire truck" go by outside; most people here (including me) use kerosene heaters in the winter, and the fire truck is just a small truck with a loud speaker and a bell that drives around the neighborhood at night issuing warnings to be careful of fire. When I heard the bells I was struck unexpectedly with a bout of nostalgia - just a nice, warm feeling that caused me to remember being warm and comfortable indoors and made me look forward to the coming winter.