“What is most intimate is what will speak to others. Perfumers build the labyrinth in which we lose ourselves out of all those secret harmonies and connections. They bring out its beauty: reinvent it so that it can be felt by all.” – Denyse Beaulieu, ‘The Perfume Lover’
For the occasion of my first COVID-19 vaccination shot, I chose a very special cologne – ‘Straight to Heaven’ By Kilian – and despite its awful, cheesy name, it held exceptional meaning. This is the fragrance I was planning on bringing to New York for our weekend at the Plaza, which was not to be. As part of Skip’s birthday celebration, it harkened to his 40th birthday party – at which I also wore this scent. As such, it’s imbued with happy memories of friends and celebrations, and days that feel a little to far away. It’s precisely for that reason that I sprayed it on before heading to SUNY for my first vaccine shot: this was a way of clearing the path back to such happy celebrations and gatherings. It was the fragrance of hope.
It brought back a lot of sorrowful thoughts as well, of all the time and moments we might have spent with loved ones over the past year. If we’d only locked down and all worn masks for three months or so – but we couldn’t do that. If only everyone was getting the vaccine and working toward herd immunity – but we aren’t all doing that. If only we’d have the sense and made the sacrifice for the greater collective like they did in New Zealand, where they can be open and hug and go the movies and sporting events. Instead, we have a rip in our country with the ignorant and selfish that take their spring breaks, defy the sense and factual information of science, and take the law into their own armed hands.
But on this day, when the sun rose and the temperatures along with it, when the scent of spring was on the wind, and this magical cologne rose from the inner crook of my elbow, I chose the side of hope. I chose to celebrate the first step toward returning to the normal we once accompanied by the wisdom we have gained.
