Smell that?

I went for a walk yesterday. It was in the morning and it had just begun to rain so the air had the smell of being clean with a bit of wet asphalt mixed in. The blooming flowers stood out against a backdrop of gray. The breeze brought hints of flowers as I walked. Jasmine, Pittosporum (mock orange), roses and wisteria were the few identifiable scents. The tulips were nodding alongside Iris and freesias. The apples were blooming white with maiden pink blushes. The red roses looked even more deeply red as if they were velvet stained with the deepest red you could imagine.

Spring just hits us all at once here in California. I've been pleasantly surprised to step outside in the evening to inhale the scents of the trees and flowers. What is it about nighttime that intensifies the air? Is it our slowing down, a lessening of pollution, the stillness of the air or instead of depending on our eyes to show us beauty, we depend on our other senses.

I thank God for my eyes and ears but I rarely thank him for my nose (especially when I have a cold). But without my nose, I lose some of my ability to taste. I lose my ability to smell. We don't think about it very often but spring's loveliness should encourage us to be thankful even when something smells unpleasant.
Thank you Lord for my nose!