Take Time to Smell the Lilacs

Nothing to me says "nostalgia" as do the lilacs when they bloom each year.  We have two huge bushes right outside the bedroom window.  Ahhhhhhhhh.....! The fragrance is everything one could wish for in a nose-gulp of air! A sweet, almost edible scent, exquisite catalyst of memories, a lingering longevity that makes me want to stay anchored beneath the bushes, until they end its glorious display.  But here's a new twist:

Did you know that if you can smell the lilac as it blooms, you're probably safe from Alzheimer's Disease?  It's true.  The lilac has been identified as a "predictor" of AD.  If you can't smell the lilac (or any one of nine other scents) you may have AD in your future--or so say scientists.  The complete article is in a slighted dated (2004) issue of Science Daily:

                     http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/12/041220013505.htm 

In a nutshell, here's what it says:  "Inability to identify 10 specific odors (derived from the broader study) proved to be the best predictors for Alzheimer's Disease: these are strawberry, smoke, soap, menthol, clove, pineapple, natural gas, lilac, lemon and leather."

You know, I always say...of all the things I've lost, I miss my mind the most.  So it was with great relief that I passed by the lilacs this morning without even looking at them....but I knew they were there!