whoa, gardenia!

i have never been so pleasantly overwhelmed with a flower's fragrance as i have with the gardenia's.

running in the dewey mist today after dawn, i was not surprised to pass the familiar scents from my path: fertilizer at the end of the block, fresh bread at a nearby cafe, fried chicken (which always manages to semi-upset my stomach) at a house on montana and 25th avenue, and all things lovely by the sea.

but this morning was different. just about every other block caught me off guard. gardenia! a perfume so easily distinguished from others. each deep inhale during the transient encounters jolted me in a way comparable to a shot of espresso taken by Jo Schmo Businessman going about his day-to-day, run-of-the-mill routine.

it was enlivening. awakening. a harbinger of what's to come. whoa, gardenia, thank you for making your presence well known!