~~Always choose to heal, not to hurt; to forgive, not to despise; to persevere, not to quit; to smile, not to frown; and to love, not to hate. At the end of life, what really matters is not what we bought, but what we built; not what we got, but what we shared; not our competence, but our character; and not our success but our significance.~~ Unknown
I choose to believe that the good stuff matters. The positive, the warmth, the gratitude, the kindness. And I think I've understood that so much more when I quit smoking. My thoughts shaped my quit and it made all the difference. When I decided that my children didn't deserve me being *itchy because I was missing my cigarettes, I quit being *itchy. When I decided that I wasn't going to let those cravings get the best of me, I stopped using them as a crutch to 'fail'. When I fully understood what being 'committed' to my quit meant, I fully committed to my quit and let go of the fictional memories of feeling 'better' as a smoker. Because all my positive thoughts mattered. All my hopes mattered. And they mattered just as much (if not more) than anything I thought I was losing.
What matters is not that you smoked, but that you cared enough about your life to quit. What matters is not that you struggled through your quit but that you hung on to it with every fiber of your being. What matters is that you are doing it...step my step, minute by minute....rather than simply wishing that you were smoke free. And sometimes it is hard and sometimes you will struggle, I'm not trying to say you won't. Life can sometimes be a struggle. Struggles, though, fade just as much as good times do. Choose to persevere. Build a quit that you can be proud of. Be significant in your own life.
Each and every smoke free breath you take is truly a miracle and you get to keep that miracle alive if you choose to. I think that is one of our greatest gifts in life....seeing the miracle that life itself is.
May you find a little bit of peace today in your quit and a few more reasons to hang on to it 
Sheri
