There are certain smells that are very distinct, and even if you can’t see the source of one, you know what it is. Say it’s a skunk, a rose, a water treatment plant, a batch of cookies. You enjoy or are disgusted by each unique scent depending on which scent it is.
Metaphorically, people’s character traits and personalities can smell good or bad. Who you are as a person can be as fragrant and refreshing as a salty sea breeze, or as odious and repugnant as day old roadkill at the height of a Texas summer. But much like smells in the physical realm, character and personality smells can sometimes be covered up by surrounding smells, so be aware of the layers of smell around you.
Sometimes things don’t give off their fragrance or don’t give off much fragrance until they are crushed, like certain flowers and other plants. Sometimes you and I can be like this, and no one knows what we really “smell” like until life hits us hard. At this point, how do we respond? Have we been filled with stench this whole time, or have we been filled with sweetness? When life crushes you and you release the fragrance of who you are, what is that smell?