Scratch, Sniff

It was weeks ago now
that first month of September we spent here on this island,
still hot and balmy.
I wanted a scratch and sniff for you,
some clever little corner of the screen                                                                     
so that I could share this most perfect thing:
the smell of beach roses, all briney.

They were abundant outside of the cottage,
and each time I passed, I wondered how I had gotten so lucky –
that they had become like dandelions in my life.

Hardy, scrappy and perfectly soft all at the same time,
nestled in their rocky, sandy homes. smelling like heaven – 
round, round hips.
I wanted to eat them, be them.

and I wanted you to smell them
as if sharing them would somehow
exponentially increase the delight
or make the sense more real.

But it was mine alone
and exquisite all the same.

Posted by kind permission of the poet.

Katie Rubinstein

Katie Rubinstein now serves as Associate Director for Seven Sisters Midwifery and Community Birth Center, Florence, MA. She joined A Network for Grateful Living in 2014 and served as Associate Director until July, 2020. With a passion for public health and social change, Katie worked for Massachusetts Farm to School, served women and families as a doula and apprentice midwife, and completed certifications in childbirth education and labor assistance, herbal medicine, and Embodyoga teacher training. She lives in the Pioneer Valley with her husband, three sons, and ever-goofy canine companion, Rainer.

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