to my friends, loved ones & especially Z

please do not smoke cigarettes - i love you!

it's been a rough morning. although Uncle M had a family history of cancer, the dr's told Aunt O they were 95% sure my Uncle's cancer stemmed from smoking. i never saw him smoke, even when i lived in his house, but i would always see a pack in his shirt pocket. i figured he was just the type to carry them around but didn't really smoke much. my Aunt told me he smoked for over 50 years, that he hid it; he would get up early to smoke before anyone else was awake & he would smoke at work. he quite smoking about 5 years ago but prior to that, US cigarettes wouldn't fulfill his addiction & he started buying filterless ones from mexico.

Dear Z, i hope you never smoke. maybe it wasn't right for Poppa & I to let you try a friend's cigarette when you were 5. we figured that you are a lot like us & if we prevented it, it would just increase the allure & your curiosity. we both hope that allowing you to try it, to see how bad it tastes made an impression on you. that hopefully in the future, you won't be intimidated by your peers, you will know & remember. this is same thing Grammie did w/me when i was a child. in my teen years i did try cigarettes again a few times, each time i tried i found them horribly disgusting. i hope it does the same for you. love you!