thankful thursday #223

This morning, my regular face cleanser was packed in my suitcase, so I used some back-up that hangs out permanently in my shower, for these very instances.

I used this particular cleanser for the first time precisely during a week last fall, in which I had my feelings hurt. The scent of that cleanser washing over my face took me right back to that sadness like a time machine.

Smells and sounds do that for me.

On the surface, maybe I'd wish that didn't happen. That the sadness couldn't creep back into my soul quite so easily, or unexpectedly.

It goes both ways, of course. Those smells and sounds trigger feelings both welcomed and not. Ones I want to remember, and ones I wish I could forget.

But after I felt the pinch of sad, I remembered the Lord's goodness and kindness to me during that time, when friends' faithfulness toward me was sustaining and life-giving. And I was thankful.

What sights and smells and sounds have sparked memories for you lately? Go on, be grateful!