It's sweltering hot out there.
I can feel the heat dripping off of me,
the sweat falling off the bottom of my sunglasses,
and my upper lip beginning to become moistened as well.

I leave my sunglasses on.
They make the freeway an orange tone that matches the heat perfectly.
I'm not sure if the air conditioning is broken in my car or not
but I don't attempt to use it I'm so serene in the California sun.

I keep putting my hand out the window although it
doesn't cool me down.
I just feel the heat in between my fingers.
I close my hand because I'm driving so fast the hot wind is beginning to
hurt my hand and I curl it into a small fist.
The image in my rear view mirror is that of a deformed child's hand,
all curled up and pressed down by the speed.
It makes me laugh and reminds me of when I was a child
and I use to distort my face into the ugliest face I could make.
I would stand their in front of the mirror staring at this ugly figure
and ask myself if I would have any friends.
I always thought that I wouldn't even be my own friend with that ugliness,
and then I would change my face back,
so thankful that it was only a game and I was beautiful again.

I inhale another bowl,
the pipe was left in my car and so the tip of it is so hot I can barely press my lips to it.
I feel the sting for a second and then exhale a huge gust of
marijuana smoke that bursts into my steering wheel and then
dissipates throughout the car and rushes out the open window.

I am happy,
exhilarated,
it's April and it's already 103 degrees.

the child gazed with caramel eyes
up towards the vast, dark sky
and with contentment he sighed
as he watched a dragonfly
make its way into the night