First Time by Adam Bishop (Memory Poem)

First Time by Adam Bishop

From what I had heard, it was addicting.
I didn't care then.  Care even less now.
“CAUSES LUNG CANCER,” the box yelled at me.

However, my brain was not listening.

Instead, I saw a friend, handing me death.

It was one of those lazy afternoons

Where old men only focus when told to.

This type of day was common that summer.

And as the night progressed, the sky became

A dynamic painting, mesmerizing

My eyes with the soft shades of its sunset.

Stars began to scatter across the dark

Showing off their bright, subtle arrangements.

Yet even with the colors and the stars,

This sunset was dwarfed by the great Blue Moon.

It almost seemed like it came from a

Classic cartoon, made out of sweet Swiss cheese.

As the Blue Moon sailed across the sea

I struggled to regain consciousness.

There was a sense of guilt in how I spoke

When my friend handed me the cigarette.

I felt like I had betrayed my past self.

Relatives, friends, teachers, and strange people

Have all advised me about one damn thing.

“Do not smoke,” they chanted in unison

As if my very existence was to

Obey this one fairly simple principle.

“Think for yourself; question authority.”

That’s what Timothy Leary has taught me.

I smoked, and lived on to tell the tale.