What If?

[JonesCarpeDiem]

What if  you were coughing up blood?

What if  you couldn't get your breath on a recurring basis?

What if  your family was standing around your body with tears in their eyes?

What if  you had to say goodbye to that grandchild you'd just met?

What if  you'd just quit before any of these things happen?

What If?

[Mary84]

Thanks Dale, Great post as usual.  Those are the questions aren't they.  Those are the things I remind myself of everyday.  I never want to say "I wish I had."    And I don't want the people who love me to and the ones I love to suffer in anyway because I chose to continue to smoke.     Have a great day my friend, Hugs, Mary

[Kim93]

Well that puts things in perspective doesn't it.  I like it.  That hits home.  Have a good day.

[ohiosheltielady]

I understand this post and for most people this is what works.  But for so many of us (me included) ... we watch people we love dearly die from this horrible horrible addiction.  I went to the funeral of a relative that had so much joy for life and he was a fisherman and a father and always had something funny to say, you know, he loved his life. 

The the cigarettes caught up with him and his family said it was a long and painful death, him not being able to breathe and the fear in his eyes, something they had never seen in this man.

So, you would think that I would have walked out of that funeral home that night and been so moved from their story that I would have quit instantly!  But his death, my father's death, my everybody in my family's death, my friends deaths, nobody's life seemed to affect me.  You're right .. if it were ME then yes, I suppose it would have an affect.  Why we can't learn from other people is beyond me, but so many times it has to happen to us before we learn ... you're right!

[carole_]

I love the 'what if's'.  It's about putting the shoes on our own feet, no longer becoming the spectator to what can happen if we don't quit, but actually recognizing and accepting the denial that keeps us from taking that "I've had enough" step to the final quit.  Addiction will keep us in a state of lies and denial for as long as we are willing to light up one more time.  We all have our bottom.  What if's are certainly part of that journey.  Thanks Dale, nice seeing you again.  Been away for a long time.  Once the site changed over I never got back on and figured it all out.  Life got me by the tail but in a million good ways.  Glad to be back and giving back, it does the soul good. 🙂

[Breakinchains]

     What if  I had a stroke? Oh  that's right, I DID!

[JonesCarpeDiem]

You know bones don't heal well if you smoke.

I severed the t right  foot  from my leg and kept right on smoking even though the ankle bone died within two months and i had to have it fused and lost all motion in my ankle.

What if I had quit smoking right when it happened.

I was in the hospital forf 11 days not smoking. I could have done it.

Maybe i would have my ankle.

What if ???

[Giulia]

Great post Dale.

[keekee]

Love it. May God bless us all.

[laney4]

What if someone posted a Blog entitled What If.... hehe just kidding.  No doubt, we've got a lot of what ifs going around amongst us.  What if I had never started smoking.  That's one of my what ifs.