IÂ’ve waited a long time since my HOF to put my speech together. To be honest, most of the delay was trying to decide what to say. Suffice it to say that this will not be the most eloquently written piece of literature that you will ever read. However, here it is in all of its glory.
I decided to quit shortly after the first of the year (2012). I had stopped before, but I never had the conviction to stick with it. My wife never really pressured me to quit and would go so far as to buy cans for me if I asked her too. She would always give me crap about it, but would do it. I think the main reason I have been successful thus far is that I made this about me. I wanted to quit. I was tired of spending money that was spit onto the ground or into a bottle. I was ready to be done with all of the things that came with chewing Cope. It has been a struggle, but I have had great support from my quit group and the secret society (ISI). Almost everyone I work with still uses. There are half empty cans in a lot of places around our shop. It is a daily test. But by the time I am faced with the temptation, I have posted my promise. Without you guys, I most likely would not have made it as far as I have. I canÂ’t imagine what it would be like to have to tell all of you that I was weak and stuffed cancer candy in my lip again.
I would like to add a note about cavers or people who choose to start using again. In the short time I have been here, there have been quite a few individuals who thought it would be a good idea to resume killing themselves. That choice never seemed to make much sense to me once I got through the fog of my initial quit. It really bothered the hell out of me after this last Monday. You see, one of my sonÂ’s classmates lost his battle with cancer this week. He was 10. He did nothing that aggravated his condition. He had to have a leg amputated to stop the spread of the disease but never complained. He soldiered through and was a joy to be around. A couple of months ago, his disease resurfaced and it finally took his life. He wonÂ’t get the chance to do a lot of things that most of us took for granted and take for granted every day. If his brothers and family had a choice, I am sure that they would make unbelievable sacrifices to have him back.
Why would someone who is perfectly healthy try to tempt fate with a substance that has been proven to cause cancer? Why would they participate in behavior that will most likely result in totally preventable pain and suffering for themselves and their loved ones? I apologize for rambling a bit on this subject, but my point is this. He/they didnÂ’t have choice to make regarding behavior that resulted in his disease. You as a tobacco user do. Make no mistake, using tobacco will kill you. Maybe not now and maybe not in 10 yearsÂ….but it will catch up with you. If you are current user or have started using again, please act to save your life and STOP NOW.
In closing, I would like to thank this site for providing a place to facilitate the great quitting that is going on here. I would also like to thank all of my April 12 group (the biggest bunch of BAMF quitters I can think of) as well as the “vets” on the site who provided the needed nudge at the appropriate time(s).
Sorry ISI, there are no midgets or corndogs in this speech.
