The Sound That Conjures Up My Childhood Best

The title above was used in a recent Reader's Digest article.... I thought about it, and I came up with more than one sound that conjured up my childhood best:

Pans banging in an early morning kitchen--Mom getting ready to fry bacon and eggs.
The drone of the washing machine on a Monday morning.
Pigs banging open their feeders in the dark of night.
Were they ever not hungry?
Fans humming on a summer night to keep us from melting on our sheets. Crickets.
My dad reading devotions at night; prayers at the table.

Which lead me to Smells That Conjure Up My Childhood Best... bacon frying (a reason to get out of bed), bleach, warm applesauce, supper in the oven when we walked in the door after getting off the bus, Lake Okoboji and the smell of lake and sand and a breeze.

Which leads to Feelings That Conjure Up My Childhood Best...secure, loved, safe...-- bored, over-worked? Yes, we lived on a farm and worked six days a week from daylight to the supper hour. When I look back, I am happy about being "over-worked." From this came a feeling of purposefulness and a work ethic that has carried me through many difficult times when I thought I could do no more.

Whenever I drive into the city, I can't help but notice the homeless people. What are their sounds, smells, feelings that conjure their childhood best? I'm thinking we don't have much in common in this area. I'm thinking that sometimes or often times life is just not fair.

What to do about it? Love God. Love your neighbor. Do the best you can on a day to day basis. Remember your special sounds, smells, feelings, and reflect this love (if you were one of the fortunate ones) to others.