The reason why is still a mystery but in Bahasa Indonesia, the verb “to kiss” is also the same for “to smell”.
Cium (prounounced ‘CHI-oom’).
Maybe it’s because Indonesians don’t greet with a kiss.
Instead they do this bump cheeks thing and validate it with a sniff.
Yup. Sniff both cheeks.
As weird as it sounds, I prefer it to pretentious air kisses.
And it’s not just a greeting for random run-ins with acquaintances or an excuse not to get to close to that aunty with bad breath.
Even the closest of family members will just, well, smell you.
My mum never kissed me. Not even on the forehead, let alone the cheek.
It would be easy to judge that she lacks as a mum in the PDA department. I know I begrudgingly thought that for ages.
Anyway, you know how Facebook has this annoyingly adorable way of popping nostalgic photos into your feed?
This one sent such a surge of nostalgia through me, I had to catch my breath.
It captures the love drunk early days of being a mum. A photo of those days would not have been complete with that iconic twins breastfeeding pillow. I can’t look at the shade of blue ever the same again.
All that euphoria helped me forget the toe-curling pain of nipple thrush.
One thing Apple is missing from its forefront technology, is a smell application. I want to be able to sniff in my babies’ pheromones again, especially the ones from this photo.
Sure, my boys still climb all over me.
But when I grab them for those snuggles and kiss their sweet lips, I can’t help but sniff them too.
I want to soak it all in but I’m also in search for that smell; that delightful combination of sweet and bitter fragrance of newborn and milk.
Instead I get a whiff of vegemite, musky classroom and sweat.
Still doesn’t stop me sniffing them like a mother dog with her puppies.
Maybe a smell is as good as a kiss.
Do you soak in smells? What aroma takes you back? What odours send you crazy?
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