After you stop smoking, you'll have new freedom and joy if you find new, better ways to use the moments without smoking.

Quitting smoking is a turning point in your life. It is a time for self-reflection and self-discovery. You'll gain confidence, self-respect, better health and a sense of accomplishment. Think of all the things you wanted to do, if only you had more time. Now, you do. Enjoy this gift to yourself.

Mature quitters have done all sorts of things with their new found time.

• A 50-year-old man just got a promotion at work and looks forward to new challenges.
• A 63-year-old man who just retired went back to school to study literature.
• A 52-year-old woman has begun to teach photography in her local art school.
• A 75-year-old man now has more time to spend with his grandchildren and loves every minute.
• A 66-year-old woman savors the moments as she works in her garden.
• A 96-year-old grandmother who stopped smoking at 75 became the star of her light aerobics class and is being written up in The New York Times.
• A 54-year-old formerly overweight smoker just finished the New York City Marathon.

"To fill the hour- that is happiness." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

Think about your life, what you've done and what is still to be done. In his book, Life in the Afternoon, Edward Fischer passed along the advice of a psychologist who said, "Have the courage to explore some other aspect of yourself. Try to find something you have left undone, some interest that got covered through the years. Prove to yourself that you still have reserves, mental and physical."

Fred T.
"When I stopped smoking, I rediscovered carpentry. I made cradle for my third granddaughter. It kept me busy and gave me a great sense of accomplishment. I even have a little business now. When I was younger, I always wanted to do this kind of thing, but I never seemed to have time."