Scent of the earth

I smell green, I smell damp
The soft soil, bruised by my steps
Emits smells strong as a skunk
But infinitely sweeter

(green, damp)

I smell puddle, I smell pool
Fresh or stagnant, sweet or bitter
The moist breath of water meanders
Around me, murmuring of caimans.

(puddle, pool)

I smell feathers, I smell fur
My nostrils strain to catch,
Slipping through some clearing,
The secret musk of jaguar.

(feathers, fur)

I smell vines, I smell orchids
The sex perfumes of plants
Make this green world a red-light zone
Dizzying in its need to breed.

(vine, orchid)

I smell sun, I smell steam
In rare patches of light and heat
The scents are brighter, headier
As life passionately basks.

(sun, steam)

I smell shit, I smell piss
Here life is basic, raw – honest.
With no chemicals to strip
The fertility from fertiliser.

(life, death)

I smell life, I smell death
The sweet fetor of leaves
That in their dying
Feed voracious new life.

(life, death)

Here in these intense green
Cathedrals of the living world
The overwhelmed senses sing.
Reverently, I smell the earth.

Recently I’ve been lucky enough to be able to visit the amazing world of the tropical rainforest. And if you’ve ever been there yourself, you’ll know the incredible scents that come from the mad green diversity of life. In response to a prompt to write about smell at readwritepoem, I knew that I wanted to try and capture some of the amazing richness of this world, through its smells. I know next time I’m in that environment I’ll realise just how little justice I did to the amazing bouquet of life, but I’ve done my best!

The wonderfully lush photo is Tropical Rainforest, originally uploaded to flickr by Raja Daja.