The Joy Of Sense-Memories!

Marian Pierre-Louis posted about the many things, large and small that can trigger memories of family.  
A few of my own old sense-memories did pop into my mind when I read the article.  That was wonderful!
Jotted down a few notes, web-clipped her post link, and moved on....

But over some time, I now find that it is as if some part of my brain has been working, in the background, unlocking more of those for me, and flashing them up at me when I am relaxed and receptive.  I think that Marian's post acted as the yeast my old memories needed.  And so many of those memories are connected to senses, not censuses, or names and dates.

And, best of all, each of those individual sense-memories seem to be the key to accessing an entire cascade of connected memories!  So many details coming back to me after having been buried deep in a old box in my dusty, musty, over-busy brain-archive.  Mental 'pictures' are something my brain has never done well.  No images.  No photos. No sketches. But I am getting some through these sense-memory triggers!

Just one example:
Brown bread and real butter.  Early taste memory.  That's my maternal grandma, and, regardless of the rest of the great meal, it was my great childhood lust.  [Still invest in real bread and real butter, even if I have to short the rent a bit....]
Led to how the long folding table was set up in the tiny living space when we came to dinner in the early 60s. Led to the details of the rest of the little winterized cottage that was their home.  Led to the place she cooked the great meal on the winterized 'screen porch'.  And mental pictures of all, for once.... Yeehah!
Led to the back yard, and other memories there.  Led to the memory of how far we walked to the lake, and memory of the cottage next door.  Led to the memory that the place the grandparents lived was once owned by my father's family, and that his mother's cousin owned that cottage next door.

Cascades of memories, linked to the sense-memories!  The mere mention of an elderberry bush, the scent of lily of the valley, the sound of particular really old songs,  each have been popping up occasionally, and letting loose avalanches of related memories for different families, and people and times.

My deeper brain seems to be working hard, without getting in my way from day to day, and pulling up sense-related keystones of memory.  I really like this.....