By Atty. Egay Uy
NOW that I have been setting appointments and talking more with doctors of various disciplines because of my advancing age, I often get reminded of my smoking days. Smoking cigarettes, that is, because one of the questions asked of me is, “Do you smoke?”
Yes, I did. But that was years ago. I started to have a taste of branded cigarettes when I was in my fourth year of high school. Smoking at that time and in the group appeared to be a status symbol. And it was especially so when you extract one from a flip-top box.
Eagerness was more of a reason for me to puff rather than peer pressure. And also, I would feel like to be in. To belong.
Long story short, I eventually graduated from the College of Law of Xavier University in 1985. My smoking became a regular habit by then. It was also because of the misconception that studying confusing and intricate provisions of law and jurisprudence would have become easier with a lit cigarette between the middle and index fingers.
And the habit, or addiction, went on when I reviewed for the November 1985 bar exams at the UP College of Law in Diliman, QC. Incidentally, it was also my first time to set foot in a place that never sleeps ― Metro Manila.
As the five-month review period rolled, my consumption of cigarettes also increased. It could probably be because we had to burn multiple candles every night absorbing provisions of law that we reviewed and first-viewed. From buying one pack at a time, I had to stack on packs in my closet and had to buy by the ream. Imagine the additional expense I had to contend with.
I was a provinciano who could hardly make it to the bar review, thanks to my only serious private employer that granted me a law scholarship and assigned me to work part-time in the corporate office in Pasig City, and to our landlady then, one of my late wife’s best friends, Ms. Gloria Ching, who reprieved us from our apartment rentals.
Back to the bar review and smoking. What I did was buy lower-class cigarettes which were much cheaper than those in flip-top boxes. The new brand tasted like $#!+. So after consuming three packs a day of that $#!+ tasting brand of cigarettes right in the middle of the review, I told myself, “I have to quit smoking if I want to live to become a lawyer.” So I did right there and then. No cold turkey, no nothing.
The message I always conveyed to those who want to quit smoking is this: if you want or need to quit, just quit. Drop your cigarettes right there and then.
Easier said than done? Yes, but it can definitely be done.
