Smokers can find benefits in quitting

Smokers don't need to hear the dangers of their habit or the nags to quit. They've heard it all before, so there's no use in belaboring the points.

Besides, today is the Great American Smokeout, so those who light up will get an earful of reminders about the hazards.

Better that we point out the benefits to those who quit.

Many smokers have significant others, children and grandchildren with whom they share their lives. For these smokers who quit, it will mean more birthday parties, Thanksgivings, Christmases, graduations and weddings to celebrate.

Smokers who quit will have opportunities to cherish the simple joys of a child's giggles, a toddler's babbling, a son's first hit at a ball game or giving away a daughter on her wedding day.

Quitting will also protect these loved ones from the harmful effects of secondhand smoke.

Quitting will mean more walks on the beach, more crimson sunsets to treasure and more warm summer days in which to bask.

Quitting will afford more opportunities for more quiet, winter days to contemplate the simpler things in life.

For those who enjoy the outdoors, quitting will offer a chance to climb figurative or real mountains, more camping and hunting trips to take and the chance for more junkets to see the sights of Indiana and beyond.

Life isn't always easy, but it is a gift -- one to be used or abused as one chooses.

The effects of tobacco quietly rob a person of this gift.

Whether a smoker decides to participate in today's Great American Smokeout is up to the individual. But when smokers think about their choices today, we hope they choose life.