Thirty-Five
When the sun shone on the property, it shone quite differently in different places. Today there was smoke in the air. Melissa savoured the eucalyptus scent, then felt a twinge of guilt. If she were allergic or had breathing difficulties, she would be tasting discomfort and even danger. She once knew someone who would have to go to hospital if he had taken such a deep breath of the fragrant air.
That’s the trouble with constant pain, thought Melissa. It distracts me. I am aware of what hurts other people. I am aware of what hurts me. My mind hovers on awareness, always. It’s tiring. And it brings a kind of emotional exhaustion, which carries its own burden of a nagging depression. I don’t need that. I need …
Her thought trailed off as her word-brain switched off and her sight
