Adorable Little Cigarette Poem by RoseAnn V. Shawiak

Smoking always relaxing me when younger, easing tension,
stress and strife of life, inhaling the wonderful nicotine
and five thousand other chemicals, including rat poison.

All added to cigarettes for our pleasure, not really assoc-
iating a morning cough and spitting up phlegm to my little
cigarette.

It was my drug of choice to keep me calm and relaxed, smok-
ing indoors, outdoors, wherever and whenever I pleased, be-
cause we live in a free world after all, don't we?

Enjoying daily smoke breaks at work, little moments to my-
self, blowing smoke into the atmosphere where I knew it
would dissipate eventually.

Talking, gathering in groups, everyone smoking and relaxing,
fast forward now to the future, having to use medication to
breathe, getting short of breath, barely walking a few feet.

Getting tired, out of breath, wondering why, older now, some-
what wiser, but too late to listen, should have done it much
earlier.

Now having severe COPD, asthma and emphysema, because I used
to smoke that adorable little cigarette, a friend I thought
could never harm me, having ignored all warnings of the
surgeon general.