Poem: Cigarette Clouds and Pine Leaves – 18/02/20

The surrounding scent of pine leaves invades my sensitive nostrils,
Since quitting smoking I have been able to discern more,
And my taste buds, they are rearing,
They sing for attention,
These senses,
They are heightened.
 
No more dulling from the poisons within those 
death sticks,
A retraction of the chemical clouds which 
Weighted not only my head
But also my mind,
And made light of my hip pocket
In exchange for the risk of ill health.
 
And now I know, that of this horrid habit,
I have succeeded beyond it,
Grown stronger, 
From the many years I had inhaled 
The carcinogenic compounds of danger.

I don’t pity those who continue,
But I wish they had the strength to put them down, too,
I pray for those who feel they don’t need rescue,
How much longer must they punish themselves
Before they can no longer rasp for help,
For their release?
 
Perhaps they’ll come to a realisation, too,
Just like me, I realised, I couldn’t continue,
For my own personal reasons, 
And for the sake of my health,
I came out of this struggle stronger,
Fighting,
With more willpower and determination
Than I believed I could grasp on my own.
 
The pine leaves emit their delicious odour,
I thank the heavens that I am still here to experience their scent with wonder,
With admiration and health,
Perhaps I quit before it was too late for myself.  

© 2020 Lauren M. Hancock. All rights reserved.
Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay

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