Coz It Smells Like You

Last night hubby got called in to work at 9pm. It's normal for him to have to go in the middle of the night and stay on till the next morning. Sometimes he comes home to shower and change before going back in again. Last night he left and it felt so odd not having him next to me in bed that I ended up taking one of his slightly used t-shirts and wearing it to bed. He found me in it this morning and asked why I was in his clothing instead of my usual pyjamas and I said "Coz it smells like you".

Has anyone heard of this before? I think it's sort of a malay culture (or maybe not). When I was younger dad had to travel out of the country at least once a month and sometimes he would be gone for 3 weeks or more. Mum would keep some of the slightly used clothing that dad had worn to sleep so that if we missed him all we had to do was take one of those item of clothing and sniff it. I would think, "Yup... that smells like dad alright!". And off I'd go to play as I didn't seem to miss him as much anymore. Smell therapy maybe? I think it really is powerful.

I remember an aunt of mine who kept all the bedsheets and clothing of a my late cousin as it was the closest thing she had to having her daughter alive and by her side again. My uncle thought it was safe to wash all the items after many months of losing his daughter, but not my aunt. It was quite heartbreaking to see her get upset with her husband for doing what he did. Some people I know commented on how she had to move on with her life. But I was thinking, dude! She lost her daughter. Let her mourn and handle this the way she wants to. Just because she holds on to things doesn't mean she hasn't moved on. Sometimes I think other people believe that the only way someone has moved on is if that person never thinks about a lost one nor talk about the person they've lost. Sure that may be the case if you've broken up from a relationship.... but not when the person passes away. But of course if a reminder of the person they've lost hinders them from living their life as they should, well... that's a different story.