the smell of beer reminds me of Sunday School

Alternate title: "Beer and Cigars"
When I was in Junior High my parents and some other families decided to start a new church in a nearby town. They were only able to find one inexpensive building to rent. It was an old Quonset hut (an empty USArmy Barracks) that had been turned into a meeting place for the Alvin Jaycees. The Jaycees were known for their Saturday night beer parties. The County of Brazoria was a "damp" county - which in Texas meant that they could serve and sell beer, but not liquor. The building had a concrete floor and the beer would often penetrate and envelope the perimeter of the place. It had a small narrow kitchen. The High School Sunday School class met there, where the beer keg remnants filled the back corner.
I had not been exposed to beer in any other environment despite the fact that both sets of my Wisconsin German grandparents partook. We only saw them for two weeks during the summer, and I was more effected by their cigarette chain smoking. My maternal grandfather and uncle both enjoyed pipe smoking, and that odor always carries me back to the mild cool summers that we spent with them in southern Wisconsin. It is amazing how smells are associated with events and times as well as people. Cigar smell has always been an enticing aroma to my nares.
To this day, the smell of beer still reminds me of those times in Sunday School in that cramped kitchen. It was a naive and innocent time. There was a hope even in the face of a sparse crowd that the church would grow and someday have a nicer place to meet.

The Human Sense of Smell: Are We Better Than We Think?

Gordon M Shepherd

"The factors reviewed here suggest that the sense of smell is more important in humans than is generally realized, which in turn suggests that it may have played a bigger role in the evolution of human diet, habitat, and social behavior than has been appreciated. All of these considerations should stimulate a greater interest in this neglected sense."

The bonds forged during those times linger long and run deep. I am reminded that both hardship and pleasant times leave marks on our souls and provide the Potter with clay that is soft and loyalty that evades even the closest familial bonds that we share.
Sitting with friends and enjoying a fine cigar adds triple enjoyment to the time...