Lilac sentimentality

Amy Lowell’s love song to lilacs appeals to our sen­ti­men­tal side. But who isn’t sen­ti­men­tal about lilacs? Do they not melt our hearts and fill our mem­o­ries with April’s first bloom and waft­ing sweet aroma? Don’t they make you think about lemon­ade and freshly baked cook­ies on grandma’s porch? For me, lilacs were a con­stant on my child­ishly con­structed May Altar where my friends and I would light can­dles and prac­tice devotions.