The boy who could smell color

 

As a child growing up he never mentioned his unique gift for he had simply assumed everyone could smell the same things. His sister, however, one day mentioned how much she liked the bright yellow on the Volkswagen Beetle they had just walked past and how its vibration felt very calming.

"Do you feel that", she asked Trevor? “I don’t feel anything,” her brother replied, "But it smells sweet, like the frosting on a cake".  Sally gave him an odd look. “Really, you can't feel that”?

By the end of the day, Sally and Trevor had figured out their special abilities. She could feel color, and he could smell it. Neither of them thought they should tell anyone. They both knew how people who were different were treated by the other kids at school.

Over the next several months they both experimented with their newly discovered abilities.  Sally really wanted to document everything in her diary but was concerned her mother might read it someday.  Trevor only ever shared his experiences with Sally.  He never said anything to any of his friends or their parents.

It was the day their class made a field trip to the zoo when Sally tried to see if the animals could also feel color.  Nothing she could come up with, however, let her know what the animals were feeling, so she gave up trying. 

The teacher had explained to her group of children how animals can smell fear.  Trevor instantly wondered if it was truly fear or was it certain colors they were sniffing.  He paid close attention to each animal enclosure he passed, and to every cage, but just like his sister, he couldn’t tell what was going on within the animals.  It was a lost cause trying to figure it out.

Both Trevor and Sally had discovered that their special talents didn’t happen at night, but only during the day.  It made sense that if Trevor couldn’t distinguish different colors at night, that he also couldn’t smell them.  But that wasn’t so with Sally.  Even in the dark she could feel the different vibrations of different colors around her.  She didn’t need to see them in order to feel them.

They both tried to figure out what they could do with this ability.  The most they could come up with was to do magic tricks for their parents and friends, but that would lead to explaining how Sally could tell which color was which in the dark, but they couldn’t do that.  That would let everyone know how different they were.

The following year a new teacher showed up at their school.  He taught science class and seemed very friendly.  He didn’t seem like just another teacher, standing up at the chalkboard droning on and on.  He appeared to really care about the kids.  So much so that Sally and Trevor felt comfortable in sharing their special abilities with him. 

One Friday, after class, both Trevor and Sally stayed after to talk with Mr. Lyman.  They were anxious to tell someone, and so far, he seemed like the safest one to tell.

Mr. Lyman listened intently as the kids explained what they thought to be very special gifts.  Sally explained about the different vibrations according to color, and Trevor told him about the aromas that each color seemed to have.  They even told him about their trip to the zoo, and how they never could come up with a test to try on the animals.  All they knew for sure was that at night Trevor couldn’t smell any of the colors, but Sally could still feel them.

Mr. Lyman sat quietly for a few minutes thinking about what the children had told him.   Finally, Trevor said, “Well, what do you think”?

Mr. Lyman stood up and walked over to his briefcase.  He pulled a book out and came back to his desk.  “I enjoy two things, science, and history.  They pretty much go hand and hand.  There have been many accounts of strange events and occurrences throughout history that science cannot explain.  Even with the passing of time, and the advancement of technology, things remain a mystery.”

He flipped through several pages in his book and finally stopped on the page he was looking for.   Looking back at Sally and Trevor he said, “Your unique abilities are indeed rare, but not altogether new.  

There are only a few documented reports of colors emitting vibrations and certain smells.  The yellow paint that was used on the Volkswagen you talked about, has been known to attract bees.  Not just because it might resemble something in nature, but because of the vibrations it sends off.   And certain color paints cause a calming effect on people, not just because of the visual, but because of its scent.”

Sally interrupted, “But why us?  How did my brother and I end up with this?”

“I’m afraid I don’t have an answer for that.  I do, however, strongly suggest you keep this to yourselves.  I wouldn’t tell anyone else.  Your first instinct to keep it a secret was a good one.  Nobody needs to know this and nothing good will come from exposing yourselves to scrutiny.”

Sally and Trevor are now grown and quietly living their lives.  Neither has ever shared their secret with anyone.

The only unexplained mystery is that the junior high school that Sally and Trevor attended has no record of a Mr. Lyman ever teaching there, and nobody remembers him.

 

 

The End