Caffeine!

The drowsiness of a bad night’s sleep sank into every nook of my body and mind. My eyes drooped, feeling as though curtain weights in a theater were letting up to bring down my eyelids. As the afternoon turned to early evening we stopped the car during our drive back home to grab a bite to eat. My mind drifted to the possibility of drinking a hot cup of chai. This establishment was know for it.

After a short wait we had our food to take home, and piping hot cups of chai, steam rising from the small spout of the plastic cup cover. I knew it would need to cool for a few minutes before diving in, lest I sear my tongue.

I let a few minutes pass, the initial steam died down. That’s enough waiting. Bringing the cup to my lips I let a small drop of the elixir hit my tongue to judge the heat. Perfect temperature. Not so hot as to scald, but hot enough to know i could comfortably allow it to pour over my tongue in measured gulps.

I wonder, in awe. Is it the warmth, the mix of spices and sugar, or an immediate absorption of a small amount of caffeine through the tongue and mouth that cause the immediately palliative effect? I feel as if the curtain weights responsible for my eyelids, reassured, double downward comfortably. The tension melts away, replaced with a calming alertness. From the mouth through the eyes, making its way through the face, head, neck and throughout the body to the tippiest of toes a readiness for life courses through the bloodstream.

A most powerful, yet gladly acceptable, psychoactive brings us to life. And without it, although we wouldn’t know the feeling per-say, we feel like death.