My dad and Muscs Kublai Khan

I don't know about you, but sometimes it is difficult seeing one's parents grow old. I say sometimes, because age is not something that should frighten us, and growing old gracefully and graciously is part of our humanity and collective wisdom. Without it, we would be poorer humans.

Still, it does hurt from time to time. Pictured left is a photo of my dad with my late mother (right) and the then girlfriend (left) of his best friend from school, Eric. My dad and Eric would remain friends for the next forty years, until he passed away sadly a couple of years ago. What I love about this photo are the expressions of vitality and hope in the faces of all three. My dad looks proud to have his future wife-to-be on his left side. Would he have known then that their marriage would stand the test of time, destined to spend the next four decades together, have three children, live, love, lose, and then be parted by death? I suppose so. Fundamentally we all know the ultimate destiny, our human frailty. But I think at this moment, the photo captures that immortality of youth, and rightly so.

The title of this post mentions Muscs Koublai Khan. What does this have to do with my dad? Well, nothing directly, but today I am wearing MKK and whenever I do, I almost always think of my dad, because he used to wear a musk perfume that smelled very similar to MKK. I know for sure that it wasn't, considering this was in the eighties and early nineties and I have to be honest, I don't know what it was. Still, the smell of my dad brings back a lot of memories. Of when he was younger and more vital. When I believed my parents were invincible and would always protect me. When our family was still together. When youth reigned supreme. When I believed in ever after. Which seems a bit contradictory, as MKK is hardly the perfume of innocence. Having said that, musk in this style smells very fleshy, of skin, and very carnal. The skin of humans in their prime, who have loved and lusted.

Today my dad may be in his seventies, with his frailties beginning to show, but I know that even though flesh may shrivel and bones weaken, his spirit remains young and true, and that is what counts. The fact that Muscs Koublai Khan can help me to believe this is part of what makes it such a brilliant perfume for me.