Winter at the Capitol

[Lycanthrope]

It was a cold, cold day, and a thick fog obfuscated everything. It was tremendously symbolic in myriad ways.

It’s funny. Lilith was two months old when Obama was elected, and I remember how I felt that night as the election returns were coming in. When his presidency was announced, it was like a fist surrounding my heart unclenched, and I could breathe again. With Lilith in my arms, I inexplicably wept with relief, suddenly believing with all my heart that she was safe, and that her future—all of our futures—were on a trajectory of kindness and justice buoyed by hope. The country is flawed and imperfect, but we were on our way to making things right.

Then November of 2016 happened, and in January, a thick fog descended on the National Mall and the fist clamped around my heart again.

The hope and valor of iris blossoms twined with chrysanthemum’s bold fearlessness, violet’s vigilance, oleander’s caution, and white and red roses for unity.

 

I have one of those things with iris and violet, where I have to try any blend that has it. I also am feeling the same melancholy and strangeness this past year, for reasons in my country that I'm not sure I understand anymore, as well as my own personal catastrophe and rebuilding.

Wet in bottle: Strong iris, powdery, rooty, dusty purple ash color that I associate with that smell.

On skin: When it gets a chance to settle, it starts off powdery iris, and then I get a strong, but solid rose petal. This has dewiness, wetness. It's like the more heavy, non-tea-rose BPAL rose. Iris and violet are hard for me to pull apart since they activate the same ionone button for me, but I do swear I get a little bit of that dark, sweet, powdery background. With more time I am getting a bit of that mum-green-stemmy, slightly sour but radiant herbal. It's not overpowering. It elevates the blend above a floral and gives it a bit of bittersweet. I will be honest, I have no idea what oleanders smell like.

With time: Oh, this is nice. I'm a rose amper, which tends to make most roses a no go. Somehow, this remains tempered and is a bit of a powdery iris predominantly with a restrained bouquet of roses nearby. It's a beautiful and elegant, non-trumpeting floral blend. Strangely, even with the flowers, it's austere, and feels like it has a good depth and strength to it.

Huh.

[zankoku_zen]

Iris, violet, and white rose. This one is a soft, delicate blend. It's very bittersweet to me. There's a fragility and delicateness to this blend. Low throw, medium wear length.

[hufflepuff]

I love this scent. Florals sometimes are too much for me, but this scent feels almost restrained. It's a somber, serious scent with a whip of hopefulness. I don't know how that's possible, but that's how it makes me feel.

[Jenjin]

All dressed up riding in a limo filled with flowers.
Too many flowers for someone that is gone.
Flowers from the funerals i've been to.
Flowers where i'm sweaty from too many hugs and sorrow.
Touching the flowers, so I don't have to touch waxy skin.
The shiny caskets covered in flowers being lowered into loamy earth.
The flowers showing their brightest faces just before the decay sets in.
These flowers give me dread.