The Unexpected Pleasure of Basil

I was on my way home from Cumbernauld on Thursday evening. I was asked to stop and do some grocery shopping on the way home. I stopped at the big ASDA just off the motorway in Hamilton. It was just easier to get to than any other supermarket I could think of. It was raining (naturally) and I had been sitting through a presentation so my senses were dulled.

I wandered the aisles a bit aimlessly. Milk, cheese, some good bread, dog food . . . . vegetables . . . what else did we need? I thought fresh herbs would perk up the mid-winter menu when it happened. I had taken down a basil plant, stuck my nose in the top of the bag it was in and sniffed. I was instantly transported to my greenhouse in July.

I love how the nose can transport me to another place and time. The smell of the fresh basil yanked me out of dreary shopping doldrums and smack into a warm summer day in my greenhouse. It wasn't just before Christmas on a dark, rainy Scottish night. It was summer and I was going to make some pesto from the The memory helped my eyes to focus on things and people again. My step lightened and I was able to finish my task with a new perkiness that had not been there before. The memory of warm summer days had visited me there in the supermarket. Work has been hard, the winter weather is grim but just as night follows day, spring will come again. That is what the scent of the basil said to me.

I haven't been very good at posting lately. I'm going to apply to use the work excuse this time. It seems that the run up to the end of the year is always the busiest. This year was no exception. I was dashing around extra furiously so that I could see the right number of target customers before the end of the month. I think have managed it.

Christmas is coming. I have just about everything finished except that I haven't posted one single Christmas card and we have no tree yet. I'll fix that tomorrow.

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p.s.

Happy Birthday Ian!