The pond has not frozen over well enough to skate on this year. Yet. There is time left this winter so I hope it does. My pond was a very active community site 30 or so years ago when all the boys of the community kept it clean and it was the village's official hockey rink. Then a rink was built in the community and hockey and skating moved to the new facility. I bought the property 25 years ago and my sister-in-law and I kept it clear for several years, when our kids were young. Since then the current changed and the climate has changed and it doesn't always freeze well enough for skating.
There is nothing like skating on an outdoor pond. Nature is all around. You can see the bird nests in the trees from the previous year, fresh tracks of pond visitors and a sense of being out there in the wild. OK, a car drives by now and then.
It is three years ago today that I quit smoking. I think of smoking now as an unfortunate period in my life that lasted forty years. I beat it finally, after many monstrous attempts, and know I will never smoke again. I beat the addiction. I may sound smug to some but feel very certain and proud of this accomplishment.
I Feel Lucky by Mary Chapin Carpenter says it all. She even talks about lighting up a smoke. Jolie Holland's Old Fashioned Morphine and John Prine's Sam Stone fit the bill too in talking about addiction today.
For anyone struggling with addiction I can say only - persevere! I could give pointers that all that I learned but feel it is an individual battle where you have to learn enough to finally conquer an addiction to anything. It's all in the mind set, attitude and way of being.
5 comments:
Congratulations! I, too was a heavy smoker for 20 years, finally quit all the way back in 1984. I agree with you completely that the major ingredient in breaking an addiction is, first and foremost, dssire. The work after that is possible. I always hated the fact that I smoked, so I was prime. We had a smoking cessation program visit where I was working, and I went. The trick I used was the rubber band on my wrist. When I wanted a cigarette, I snapped the band against my wrist hard enough to hurt. Took my mind off the cigarette.
I had a friend who used the rubber band method. I used patches at the beginning to get over the worst part. I'm very happy and remind myself every day of this accomplishment. It was very big because I tried for over fifteen years, unsuccessfully.
That is wonderful, Cuidado! I am going to e-mail your post to my sister Amy who has quit several times, once for as long as nearly 2 years . . . and the good news is that recently she had her last cigarette on 12/31 at 11:50 p.m.!! She hasn't smoked in 14 days and we are hoping this will stick this time. Struggling with addiction is difficult indeed. Your post is inspirational.
PS I hope to be back blogging soon. The shock of the cold and snow (plus a cold of my own) and going back to work has me reading blogs again, but not writing anything. Great trip to Belize, but I failed at bringing warmth north.
I'm glad you tried to bring the warmth, Nan. I tried too and was met with a huge pile of snow. Glad you had a great trip. Your sister can e-mail me for tips....things that worked for me.
Congratulations on staying smoke free. My dad quit years ago. He'd often say on later occasions that he still craved a cigarette once in a while. Keep up the good fight.
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