What is that smell?

“What is that vile, atrocious smell?” I hollered as I rushed past my companions into the dense growth of the tomato forest. The air around me felt heavy and pungent; that awful smell enveloping every pore of my being until I felt I could barely breathe. I was suffocating and starting to feel disoriented. I started to panic, my head felt fuzzy and I stumbled. I yelled frantically to my comrades but my words came out discombobulated and seemed to buzz around my head in the heat. I tried to move but I bumped into some others crowded around an especially juicy Cherokee Purple tomato. How could they be trying to eat right now with that stifling stench? Maybe I could avoid the smell or at least discover where it was originating, so I got very close to the ground near the roots and stems that thickly populated this fruit haven. I was dismally disappointed when I could only find more of the same all-encompassing smell. How could this be? Where was the tantalizing smell of the tomatoes that usually surrounded me?

Was it me?? I sniffed awkwardly, trying not to look too conspicuous. I looked around just as quickly to see if my fellow tomato lovers were staring at me or worse, avoiding me. Could I blame them? That smell did seem to be all around me. Instantly, I could hear the chatter around me speaking as if directly in my ear.

“Ugh, that awful smell”.

“So vile”.

“I can’t stand to be around it”.

“It. is. disgusting”.

“I never want to tolerate that smell again”.

“Get it away from me!”

“Inexcusable”.

I felt so small and alone. So very ashamed. What was happening to me? If only I didn’t smell. I rushed past many plants as fast as I could. Everything is a blur and I am well out of the forest before I realize…..it’s gone! The smell is completely gone! I can’t believe it. I look around, suddenly with clear eyes but more importantly with a clear nose. The world has opportunity again. Beautiful colors, smells, and sounds surround me and I wonder how I could get so bogged down that I couldn’t see the forest for the trees. Several others joined me and ended up flying to greener pastures, giving up the coveted juices of the plump tomato plants. Unable to bear the scent of the marigolds that surrounded the tomato plants.

“In the end, whether we are humans or glasshouse whiteflies, we are all just trying to survive”. The farmer thought to herself as she walked through her garden. While a glasshouse whitefly is not likely concerned with its acceptance and self-worth, it is concerned with survival just as we are. Lucky for them, searching elsewhere for a different food option seems much easier than nurturing her physical, mental, emotional, and social health. She sighed. She was always trying to understand the natural world around her from divergent views. For all the farmers and gardeners alike, most of all be an active observer with all your senses. Self-care is vital for my survival and the multiple lives I will touch with this healthy, vibrant crop. Let me just have a bite of this delectable tomato while I admire the beautiful foliage of the interplanted marigolds that surround and protect my plants from the ravages of the glasshouse whitefly while simultaneously attracting beneficial insects. These marigolds also help grow longer roots and bigger and more plentiful fruits. I smile to myself as some juice runs down my chin. I am a badass just like the marigolds.