Cigar

Slinky modal Miles
Almond smoke, curl and caress
Man and moment – one

The comfortable cool of an afternoon. My senses are slowed as if slightly stoned. My head bobs involuntarily to the slow meandering groove of a muted trumpet. A soft brown cigar warms my fingers. My mouth is warm and tingly with activity– tongue toying with the trickling flavors. Roasted nuts. Chocolate. Fruit leather. Caramel. Softly spiced with the just slightest sweetness.

I imagine swirling a Speyside single malt in my free hand and the picture is complete. Maningrida is transformed into my own plush and private cigar lounge. Not even my haiku captures the satiated simplicity of the scene. Bliss. It has been far too long since I’ve used that word.

My loving relationship with cigars started some time ago - long before I ever tried a cigarette. The thing that all these anti-smoking lobbyists forget is that smoking – really, engagingly smoking – is one of the greatest pleasures available to man.

Cigarettes have long since sucked the ritual and enjoyment out of it. They have brought with them nasty words like habit and addiction. Cigarettes are evil – a slow suicide for a cataleptic public. But smoking a quality tobacco in a clear and contemplative environment is otherworldly.

It’s not for everyone, surely. Like anything else - wine, beer, scotch, coffee, caviar, cat ownership – each to his own. Even then, there is a time and a place for everything. Smoking a cigar is like masturbation – seductive, sensual and deeply satisfying yet, when done in public, obnoxious and offensive to others. It is, like every indulgence, unashamedly selfish and should be undertaken accordingly.

I have not been as content as I am now for some time. This is no special day. All it took was a moment of clarity to see that there are no things so self-serving as worry, angst and depression. A simple cigar showed me that this afternoon. Maybe others might have stopped to smell a rose or something. That’s fine, if they want to poison their bodies like that. Let them.