The Power of Senses

Something that will never stop amazing me in grief is the power of the senses. The ability for a single chorus of a song or a familiar scent to take you back to another moment in time… or back to when a person you lost and miss so dearly was alive.

Mom was a HUGE music fan. She went to concerts all the time, she had the radio turned on 24/7, and she was constantly singing along to her favourite jams. Her favourite station to listen to while in the Toronto area was Q107, and her favourite station in the cottage country area was Rock 95 - both were new rock / classic rock stations.

I inherited my mom’s SUV when she passed away, and I had a really, really hard time changing the FM favourites she had saved. I ultimately never removed Q107 or Rock 95, even though they’re pretty low on my list of preferred radio stations. I grew up with both of them on all the time, I can sing along to pretty much every song that comes on, and boy do the songs bring me back to when Mom was alive. I don’t flip on the stations regularly but when I do, I’m amazed every time that just listening to a song that played a lot when she was alive reminds me of her.

Sometimes the trigger is positive and I think of a happy memory of Mom and the song… sometimes it makes me really sad because I miss her and I miss my life from when she was alive. I always used to change the station when I was a passenger in the car with her - but I’d do anything to have her driving again with Def Leppard or The Red Hot Chili Peppers playing on full blast.

Are there any senses that trigger thoughts or grief of your loved one? I’d love for you to share in the comments!

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