Nows and Forevers

I spent about an hour working out on a marvelous early summer night — the first night of summer it was — and the latest of a half-dozen outdoor activities of an hour or so the past week.

Between strides, I noticed something was different. I wasn’t wheezing. There was no coughing. My nose wasn’t running. Allergies, which have debilitated me most of my life every spring, had disappeared.

It had been a tough couple of weeks, between the height of pollen season and the Canadian wildfires that drifted smoke in the skies above my head. Add to the fact the fact that I had run out of the allergy medication I use daily in the spring and fall and I had never gotten a refill. For the first week or two after stopping the medication, I wondered about how stupid I was.

And then, the symptoms eased.

I’m not sure why. The pollen count, while not as high as it was, remains moderate. The wildlife smoke has abated but it’s possible that it could come back. And without my allergy medication, instead of being at the mercy of the elements, I seem to have passed the pain point.

I’m breathing easier, at least until hayfever season begins. Then I will likely have to get back on the Zyrtec.