Return of an ‘Old Friend’

Not an old friend I welcome with open arms. Not at all. And I’m talking about The Haze.

If you hail from my part of the world i.e. South-East Asia, you should know what I’m talking about. Every year for a period of a few months, we suffer from acute air pollution caused by forest fires occurring in our neighbouring country. The forest fires are not naturally-occurring due to dry spells, in case you were wondering. It is the easiest and fastest way to open plantation areas hence naturally the only way many farmers know. Every year, year in year out, the monsoon winds bring in the haze from down South. I don’t know how it impacts other people but it affects me much personally: I itch, I get asthma attacks and if the haze is bad enough, I even develop painful rash-like bumps.

The haze has been bad the last two days. I stay indoors as much as I could, and even at home, no window is opened. And still I itch. It’s frustrating because nothing seems to be done to reduce the forest fires and the devastating impact on the environment over the years. Well, if something has been done to improve things, no one has noticed. So… can we see more efforts please?

In the meanwhile, I’m keeping the inhaler close by my side. I haven’t had a need for it in weeks since recovering from the cold. And I found myself reaching for it yesterday. Drat.