“Why Do You Smoke, Mommy?”

I remember asking my Mom that question. It’s a natural question to ask when you’re a kid and you want to know what’s going on. “It’s something that adults do, but don’t you think about doing it.” To me as a kid, it was kind of an odd thing, watching the smoke pour from her nostrils. I looked to see how many times she could breathe out and still be blowing smoke. I wondered what it was supposed to do. It must do something, I thought, or why would anyone do it?

Of course there came the time when the one of the guys I hung out with snagged a pack of cigarettes from his house and invited us to go back in the woods to try them out. It was Dim who got the cigarettes…he was usually the one getting in trouble. Although, trouble in those days was different than today. It came around the circle to me and all I remember is how disgusting it tasted. My opinion never changed.

I understood later why Mom smoked. All the fashionable stars on television and in the movies smoked. It was glamorized on the screen in a way that captivated people. My Mom smoked the way they did…elegantly. As I grew up, it was never an issue for me, never a temptation.

When the dangers of smoking started to emerge, thankfully Mom quit. She tried using those plastic cigarette holders for a while. They were supposed make it safer. Then one day she just decided to be done with it. She just decided.

Mom has been gone a number of years now. Breathing difficulties were a constant part of her life in later years. I will never know the actual difference a smoke-free lifestyle would have played.

Many of life’s major health threats are a result of bad choices; smoking, drugs, overeating, lack of exercise, stress, etc. Since this blog is about fitness, I’m guessing most of you reading this don’t smoke. However, if you’re a parent and you know you need to make some lifestyle changes, those little minds that think about everything you do and say can be shown a better way if you’ll make the decision. Just decide.