feeling lucky and other random thoughts

[Don]

Do you ever get the feeling of being one of the 'lucky' ones to quit?

We see many friends around us in our everyday travels who try and try and try. They ask us how we did it? They tell us it's too hard for them to quit.
The simple answer is we didn't just right out and quit either.
We too, tried and tried until finally we found our footing to stay strong against our personal evil.
To quit means to commit to something. To persevere. It does not matter the amount of stumbles one makes along the walkway as long as one still looks down the path and says to themself "I will journey on to be free from my addiction".

So to all those we feel quitting is too hard to do, I say to you, keep at it. Your time will come.

[ncpops]

I feel lucky when I see a friend and he's had most of one lung taken out. They had no choice but to quit then. How fortunate we are to push the addiction out of our lives before it consumes us completely!

Jimpops

[Ann]

Yes I feel lucky that I was able to quit and compared to others I had an easy time of it. Make no mistake it was hard and I went through a bunch of fears, doubts, withdrawals, etc but it was worth it. When I see people using oxygen masks, having a hard time breathing, always in the hospital for one thing or another it makes me glad that I don't have to go through that.

[Don]

This weekend while at the botanical gardens my wife and I noticed a woman pushing a guy in a wheelchair with an air hose to his nose. Young guy too.
Makes one wonder why....and then those suspicions we have crop up.

So I do feel privelleged(sp?) a bit.

[Elaine]

I do feel lucky and grateful. When I see people smoking, I feel badly for them; they don't know what they are missing by being free of cigarettes. When I see young people smoking, it breaks my heart. Quitting isn't easy, for sure, but the end results are worth every craving and the feeling of freedom is priceless.

Thanks, Don, for reminding us of how fortunate we are!

[slim]

That is a good question Don
Luck is the intersection of opportunity and preparation. If i am lucky it's because i made the decision to quit and did WHATEVER i needed to stay quit. Most of quitting is between our two ears. Master that and you can create some luck in the quitting business.
I am very thankful I quit 4yrs 11 months ago.... relapsing is not an option :-)

I pray that all of you struggling or trying to quit or quit again will find the Wherewithall to jump with faith into the smokefree world...you can make it!

_slim

[Bubb]

Sometimes I think I used up most of my luck in the 60's. I'm still here aren't I? Then I think about the soul-mate I adore and married and have stayed with for 33 years. Then I look at my kids and think....gee...they're good kids..... Yep....I've been lucky. (Had to work at some of these things too so it wasn't all luck I suppose).

Then I think about my father who died of lung cancer at the age of 59. I can also think about my father-in-law who is battling lung cancer (he's 79 and all ready had part of one lung removed).

Then I think about the tobacco companies and all the executives and scientists who've stuffed their pockets (at the expense of us foolish slobs who smoked those d**n things for so long).

Yes, some of us are able to quit, but I don't believe we're off the hook. My father-in-law quit 20 years ago and it finally came back and got him. Each day we awake to a great day is a blessing.

[Graciedonovan]

Yes, with this quit I do feel lucky. Or at least better prepared. I made up my mind, and just did it without looking back. My last quit of 2 years was an uphill battle all the way. I was not a nice person, and I fought for every day smoke free. But something wonderful blanketed me this time, and I just knew this was it, and that I was never going back. Lucky, prepared? I was raised to never look a gift horse in the mouth. So...