Smoking

In the summer of 1945 the celebrations for the end of WWII were over but the real celebrations were just getting started for our family. On this day two of my uncles arrived home from the war and landed at the station in Sydney Mines. The station was no more than a hundred meters from Ma Vickers' house. All the family and neighbours were at the house to welcome the heroes safely back in Cape Breton.

Hugs and kisses all around and tears of joy for their safe arrival. Tears of sadness for the ones who never returned and specially for my uncle Purvis who was killed in action. He was the youngest of all who volunteered and Ma Vickers' youngest to go overseas. I do not remember if there was drinking on that day but I do know everyone was drunk on happiness.

My two cousins and I found ourselves outside and my older cousin had a pack of cigarettes in his hand. He picked them up off the counter and with all the fuss nobody missed them. We were 8 and 9 years old and scrambled to the middle of the yard where an old apple tree became our hiding place for our adventure. Tall grass and some bushes covered us well and we each took a cigarette from the pack of Camels. There was no cork tip or filter but just a small bit of raw tobacco sticking out from the end.

With all our experience of watching people smoke we were having difficulty in getting the cigarette in our mouths the right way. The taste of that tobacco was was horrid but we persisted. My cousin scratched match on rock and after three attempts he lit his and our tobacco sticks. We puffed, inhaled and our heads exploded. We gagged and came close to getting sick when two shadows hovered over us. Two of our uncles stood there and under any other circumstances we would have been treated harshly.

I was glad for the intervention and lucky to get off with a scolding. That day taught me a lesson I am thankful up to this day that I never smoked another cigarette. Yes - I did puff a few cigars while fishing to keep the flies away, but I never inhaled. This was one thing I had in common with President Clinton - he never inhaled either.

I am eternally grateful for the lesson I learned as nearly every friend I had who is no longer with us smoked and died way to early.