I was in an Uber on my way to a medical test. I was staring out the window. We were stuck in traffic. It’s sweltering outside. The Uber was cold with blasting air conditioning.
A worker who lifts heavy beer, soda and water onto trucks from the discount warehouse walked slowly past my window. He leaned against the hood of a red van and lit a cigarette. I was taken back twenty-three years ago when I quit smoking and felt the nicotine rush and the Marlboro taste. I loved smoking; my body was so addicted and manipulated by nicotine addiction. The craving was overwhelming for a few moments. It would have been so easy to light a cigarette. So darn easy to get addicted again.
At that moment I snapped back to the reality of the Uber ride. I took a deep breath and was so very thankful that I don’t smoke anymore.
Proudly thinking about my smoke-free life, a swift change in the weather caught me by surprise. Mixed with the sweltering air was an eerie coolness, a precursor to a storm.
Dark clouds clustered above with a distant rumble of thunder. The wind rose up and swirled the sidewalk garbage into the tops of the thick leaves of the summer trees.
The worker I was watching tossed his cigarette and ran for cover as the rain started to fall. Traffic was still struggling to move and I watched the windshield wipers sway left to right.
Georgia
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