Chocolate strength

Strength is the capacity to break a chocolate bar into four pieces with your bare hands - and then eat just one of the pieces.

Isn't that the truth!

This quote came to me as an e-mail forward. It was one of several about chocolate in the message, most of which I had heard before, but this was the saying that stood out as most meaningful to me.

Self-control. I often don't have nearly enough of it. I remember growing up and Mom talking about the evils of "instant gratification." That's a hard term for a little kid to understand. For a long time, I didn't understand what it meant, but the idea came across loud and clear that, whatever it was, Mom didn't approve of it! (lol)

When I got older, I learned that we were a middle class family, and that one of the important middle class values is that of not seeking instant gratification. We were supposed to work diligently and consistently towards harder-to-reach but much more satisfying goals than those that come easily and fast. For example, you save up for the down payment on a house before you trade your used car in for a snazzy, new model. Or, in other words (more at a child's level), you save your nickels for a month to buy that record you want instead of spending the money you have today on a candy bar.

I'm glad I got that lesson, and I'm glad I internalized it -- for the most part. I never did internalize it totally, 100%, and I'm glad about that, too. Because, frankly, instant gratification can be a lot of fun! Not as a lifestyle, of course, but occasionally, once in awhile, it can be soul nourishing. Diligent, consistent effort is the way to go most of the time, but if you never spontaneously take a day off and blow a little money on something frivolous, you are liable to end up with a very dour outlook on life -- and a very dour look on your face.

So while I consider breaking a chocolate bar into four pieces with your bare hands and then eating just one of the pieces to be the more admirable of the two behaviors and the way to proceed most of the time, I certainly would not advise being obsessive about it. There are times when you actually need all four pieces. After all, like they say, "All things in moderation." Even moderation itself.


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