Axe, the cologne.  

It smells.

Whenever I smell it I think of confused teenage boy, who is way overcompensating for his personal hygiene.

This year I teach middle schoolers and have been smelling it a lot lately.

The smell is strong and potent and for some reason it seems to elude the user to how much they have actually used.

Last Christmas I went home for a couple of days.  I usually don't bring any shower stuff home with me, I figure that I'll just use whatever is there; but somewhere in between me leaving for college 6 years ago and now my brother has grown up and started using less gender neutral body washes aka Axe. So when I was searching for something to use Axe was my only option. I thought, it can't be that bad.  My mistake.  I smelt of teenage boy the rest of the day and I swear a few showers after that.  It was like a skunk had sprayed me, I should have bathed in tomato juice to get it off.  The axe smell stuck and it was strong.

The other week I was walking through the middle school hallway, which is always a dangerous place in between classes.  As I was trying to dodge students on my way to discuss curriculum with a fellow teacher, I was attacked.  I didn't even realize it was there until I was in the middle of it.  I was engulfed in  a giant cloud of axe.  Sure enough, I turned to my side and there was Nehaimah spraying up a storm.  And I was trapped in the middle of it.  I was hoping it won't be that bad, but I was wrong.  Almost every student had a comment on it the rest of the day.  Some could identify exactly what was, "Ms. Tutt you smell like Axe, that's weird," a forward 7th grade girl, to others who are less versed in the world that just smelt something funny, "Ms. Tutt you smell different today, I don't like it," an outspoken first grade boy.  The smell was noticeable and strong.

Axe is long lasting and noticeably strong, something I desire in my relationship with God.  I desire to have a strong smell of the Lord in my life to others.  For it to be consistent, not wavering through showers of trials and troubles.  I need help from the Lord, who is transforming me, so that when someone meets me the presence of the Lord is so strong it is recognizable, it is something they can sense, but unlike axe, it is something they actually want to have for themselves.  Father teach me, change me, help me to be a refreshing smell to others.