Seize the (Aromatic) Day
Making every day count in 2026.
I recently had the pleasure of interviewing award-winning natural perfumer, educator, and author Mandy Aftel about her new book Symbolorum: The Secret Wisdom of Emblems. It’s an incredibly personal and thought-provoking conversation that I hope you’ll check out. You can listen on Apple podcast, Spotify, Amazon Music, or wherever you get your podcasts. Or go here.
This latest book of hers is unique in that it’s meant to read like a bibliomancy, meaning you can open the book to any page and read a particular passage, in this case an emblem. Each emblem consists of a title, a picture, and a saying.
I’ve really enjoyed doing this over the past month: I open up to one page and do a journal entry relating the meaning to the sense of smell. Today I wanted to share one of those entries with you. I thought it was a great way to start the new year.
January 3rd, 2026
I opened up the book to page 78 which said the following …
Diarii Omnes
Everything is of a day
“Think that every day might be the last; the daylily is a trusty reminder of this.”
As Mandy reflects in her notes on the page, “A daylily is the perfect symbol of fleeting beauty and the quick passing of time. The flower’s blossom is short-lived - only 24 hours. The drooping daylily reminds us to live each day like it’s your last.”
How can we connect this to our sense of smell?
The most obvious connection for me is that, like the lily, smell is ephemeral.
Its fleeting, momentary presence reminds of the importance of being present, in order to really experience the moment.
Just as quickly as a scent experience presents itself, no sooner has it passed.
Did you pay attention?
Did you take it in?
Did you make the most of the moment, so you can treasure the memory?
I think about what that can mean in daily life:
The smell of a loved one (even a pet) as you hug them before going out the door.
The smell of the first cup of coffee/tea in the morning, that sets you up for the day.
The familiar smell of your home which you enter after a long day away.
The smell of a favorite comfort food baking in the oven.
For me, it’s about seizing the moment to take in the daily smells that shape so much of how we experience the world.
The motto that “everything is of a day”, which reminds us to live each day as if it’s our last, is a great way to start the year. It’s a chance to live with more intention, to focus on the here and now; not dwelling on the past, or fearing the future.
What beautiful smells can you experience today? Make note of them - write them down at the end of the day even.
For the pleasure you feel when you smell something beautiful is worth taking in fully. That is the power of smell. While fleeting, it makes you feel alive.
And isn’t that something to look forward to every day?
Very much enjoyed reading your post! And this is what came to my mind: I can't smell tomorrow, only today, only this moment. But scent tends to linger in the mind, like music. I can carry it with me from moment to moment, even unto tomorrow.
In a world that seems to keep moving from tragedy to tragedy, measured in months and years, I prefer to focus on the here and now. Perhaps here I can change something that I could not tomorrow.