"She was 16 and beautiful..."

[marciem]

This is a post from a brilliant man who quit smoking and wrote a lot of meaningful posts during his journey.  He went by "JWG... the Invisible Man" .  Approx. 3 1/2 years after he quit, he was diagnosed with Stage IV Lung Cancer, and passed about 6 weeks after his diagnosis.  He was never 51...

She was 16 and beautiful

Posted on QSMB Jul 25 2010 by JWG.

She was 17 and thought it was cool
She was 18 knew she was in control
She was 19 living in the fast lane
She was 20 and would quit before hitting 21
She was 21 and thought new years eve was better
She was 22 the new job was to much stress right now
She was 23 and her fiancée smoked anyways
She was 24 the baby would be fine, what’s a little nicotine
She was 25 what else is there for a stay at home mom to do
She was 26 job interviews are just to demanding
She was 27 in this job you have to be social
She was 28 her uncle just died but she would be alright
She was 29 thinking this time Im ready and 30 is my number
She was 30 maybe just one more year
She was 31 who can handle a divorce all alone
She was 32 working two jobs and life’s to hard
She was 33 and the new boy friend doesn’t mind anyhow
She was 34 wedding plans are all she could do
She was 35 his kids are so wild , just need the break time to time
She was 36 a quit would have to wait , to much on her plate
She was 37 forty wont be to late
She was 38 a daughter and two steps sons a mini van and career
She was 39 one more year and so done
She was 40 are you crazy and gain weight
She was 41 and probably couldn’t anyways
She was 42 and enjoy smoking

She was 43 but I should try, just for a month
She was 44 her little girl smoking, and wonders what went wrong
She was 45 The Doctor said it wasn’t good
She was never 46

[TW517]

Wow.  I clicked the "Like" button, but only because there was no sad face button

[indingrl]

NICOTINE CAUSES LUNG CANCER-FACT! OUR family is experiencing that FACT NOW-TODAY! Thanks for reality and responsibility of MY FREE WILL CHOICE-taught by reading Joel's FREE book-NEVER TAKE ANOTHER PUFF EVER- @ whyquit.com-thank you for sharing.

[Barbscloud]

Thought provoking post.   I just spoke with a long time friend last night.  He's been in California forever, so I don't him very often.  He let me know a couple of month ago after the fact, that he was diagnosed with lung cancer last November.  He had surgery and four rounds of chemo. The chemo has taken a toll, but he's doing well and returned to work in August.  He quit smoking 20 years ago.

[minihorses]

Wow, that is exactly describing my reasons, excuses for quitting all these years.  I pray I can be lucky enough to escape much damage. This post hit so close to home I cried BUT it also strengthened my resolve that this will be the end of my smoking days for good.  I watched my mother-in-law go through the process of smoking, Copd, nebulizer, oxygen at night, oxygen tank and concentrator 24 hrs. a day, ending up in hospice where I watched her as she died. I promised myself and hubby I'd quit, but 3 years later here I am again. Thank you for posting this! It's a must read for everyone on the site whether they're an elder, working on their quit journey, or newbie.

Julie

[marciem]

Yep, Mini.. I think each and every one of us can identify with all the "reasons" we used to continue smoking and what kept us enslaved for decades some of us (me)... as Roseanne Rosanadana used to say ... "its always something".  JWG could make us cry, and make us laugh and cry, or just flat out roll on the floor with his descriptions of quitting smoking.  I'll share more as time goes on.  Many many were lost when QSMB went *poof*, but I did save many of my favorites when he died.

[Barbara145]

Wow is right.  It is so sad.  4 1/2 years after I quit smoking they found a spot on my lung.  The pulmonologist thought it was cancer.  They did a CT scan and could not rule it out.  They did a PET scan and found that it was not cancer.  It was scarring.  By God's grace I was spared this time. What a fool I was for smoking all those years. 

[marciem]

This struck me, Barbara... 4 1/2 years after I quit I was diagnosed with lung cancer.  I'm a year and a half post-treatment and currently cancer free!! 

We may not have completely dodged the bullets that smoking shot at us, but as John (JWG) used to say

"I didn't quit smoking to live longer, I quit to live better"

and

"Not a day will ever go by that life is 100% perfect.
But 100% of the days are better not smoking " .      

DON'T PUT THINGS IN YOUR MOUTH AND SET THEM ON FIRE!!  (another from the mind of the Invisible Man)

[Giulia]

Wow.  Sure hits home, don't it?!  Thanks for sharing this post.  A wake-up call for many, I hope.  Please do share more of his material with us.

[desiree465]

This is such a good post.