I have always been intrigued by the fact that sounds and smells can trigger such strong memories. These senses take direct paths to our brains. These neurological bypasses allow the memories of scents and sounds to be immediate, vivid and emotional.
I hear the cicadas in my grandmother's backyard from so many years ago and they harmonize with the cicadas in the tree beside me. A miracle of the mind.
Cicadas spend most of their lifecycle underground in the nymph stage. They emerge every 13 or 17 years to become adults and to mate. After years of darkness, they have lots to sing about.
Males cicadas make their music by vibrating the tymbal membrane on their abdomen. They make buzzing, whining and rattling sounds. Together, a group of cicadas can create a wave of sound that has tone and pitch with synchronized crescendos and decrescendos. Sounds like music to me!
I am mesmerized as I listen to the amazing sounds of the Cicada Summer Symphony. I am a young girl skipping down a cobblestone lane. I am a young woman studying with an open window that invites the music in. I am a new mother gazing lovingly at a little miracle as we sit under a shady tree. I am a grandmother sharing the music of summer with curious grandsons. I am sitting on the deck at our trailer listening to the music of summer.
I am blessed.
References:
McDonough, M. (2024). The Connections Between Smell, Memory,
and Health | Harvard Medicine Magazine. In magazine.hms.harvard.edu.
https://magazine.hms.harvard.edu/articles/connections-between-smell-memory-and-health
thestrangebrew. (2026). Why We Associate Certain Sounds With Specific Experiences. In The Strange Brew . https://thestrangebrew.co.uk/why-we-associate-certain-sounds-with-specific-experiences/
