alexander j watt - The Cigarette

when i imbibe
the ash
of a flicker of coal
wrapped in leaf
mixed in air
my whole joy
explodes
and is extinguished
a moment later
by the exhale
leaving just the glowing
wick
of the next explosion

this pistoning
of exhilaration
ruins me,
once i dreamt
i fed a cigarette machine
with my own
quivering flesh
my blood
sticking to my lip
flecks of it on
my teeth
as i coughed
turning white

loudly exclaim
the evil
in a puff of smoke
and be smug
in your glass dome -
don't you understand?
I am no
seedy individual
my way
is the way of
the dragon
i see through his eyes
everything
is in decay
this mortal cylinder
is just another way

I had not smoked for years
untill today

(2008)

alexander j watt

http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-cigarette/