I was coming home from the gym after an exhausting workout and feeling pretty proud of myself. I had worked hard, pushed my limits and was eager to collapse into bed for a well deserved rest. Then I saw her. My girlfriend was on the couch, the TV was on, but she was not watching it.
She was sniffing my gym clothes.
I had to do a double take to make sure I was seeing what I thought I was seeing. But sure enough, my girlfriend was there, with my sweaty gym clothes in her hands and her nose buried in them. I was so shocked that I couldn’t move. I just stood there, watching her as she inhaled deeply, like she was smelling a bouquet of roses.
Finally, I snapped out of my trance and cleared my throat. She jumped, dropping the clothes and turning to face me. I could see the guilt in her eyes, and I knew she was embarrassed to get caught. I was embarrassed too, not only because she was sniffing my gym clothes but because I had this weird feeling that I was invading her private moment.
Before I could say anything, she spoke up. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I know it’s weird but I just love the smell of your sweaty gym clothes. It’s like . . . breathing in the essence of you.”
I had to admit, it was a pretty romantic sentiment. But I was still confused. I mean, why did she feel the need to sniff my gym clothes?
My girlfriend explained that she loves the feeling of being close to me, even when I’m not around. She said that when she sniffs my gym clothes, she can feel like she’s right there with me, feeling my energy and getting a sense of who I am.
At first, I was a bit taken aback. But then I started to think about it and realized that maybe she was onto something. After all, smell is one of the strongest senses we have, and it’s closely linked to memory and emotion. So maybe my girlfriend was trying to capture a piece of me and keep it with her.
I still wasn’t sure how I felt about my girlfriend sniffing my sweaty gym clothes, but I could understand why she was doing it. So I decided to let it go and just enjoy the moment.
After all, it’s moments like these that make relationships so special.