As a kid I liked chocolate a lot. I remember receiving candies at holidays and always being disappointed with the non-chocolate lot. But sometime in my youth that love disappeared, or at least decreased. I don't remember when exactly the change occurred but I do distinctly remember the realization of it. I was on a cruise with my mother and her siblings. It was the third night and I was ordering. There were several dessert options but the only one that sounded truly delightful was the plate of fresh fruit. My waiter commented on my choice, noting that I had made similar orders the two previous nights.
My apathy toward chocolate continued for several years, which was actually kind of nice for a girl who had self-esteem issues. No chocolate meant a slimmer figure for me. But then I got pregnant with Thomas and everything changed.
In my last month of that pregnancy I could NOT get enough chocolate. Seriously, the craving was so bad. I ate so much chocolate that month, but I was never satisfied. There was even a day when I made a milkshake with chocolate ice cream, chocolate milk, Oreos, and chocolate syrup. Just writing that out makes me want to vomit in my mouth a little. But it wasn't chocolatey enough to satisfy my need. Finally, in my last week of pregnancy, the chocolate gods smiled on me. I discovered the triple dark chocolate magnum ice cream bar.
It. Was. Divine.
Never in my life have I been so completely overwhelmed by the perfection of food. My taste buds sang. My body tingled. Ah, what a beautiful moment that was.
Two weeks later, no longer pregnant, I ate another one. It was unpleasantly rich.
However, my attitude toward chocolate shifted after Thomas came. I liked it again. Brownies, cookies, cakes, pies, candies, popsicles, ice cream. I would gladly help you eat them.
And then pregnancy and childbirth struck again and my body changed. It took me several months to figure it out but I have discovered that somehow, in giving birth to Berto, I became allergic to chocolate. This isn't one of those stand-next-to-someone-who-touched-chocolate-three-hours-ago-and-you'll-die allergies. I just cough. Something about chocolate irritates my throats and I get an unpleasant mucus buildup which has to be dislodged. Sometimes the cough ones I'm a matter of minutes, and other times it takes a few hours. But it always comes. My chocolate intake has plummeted dramatically since my discovery, but occasionally I forget and eat something. Other times I willingly go into a dessert, knowing the punishment my body has in store for me but accepting it for the reward at hand. It's become an interesting dilemma, picking and choosing my desserts, weighing the benefits and consequences of each treat.
Chocolate chip cookies are almost always worth it.
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