The love of my life!

Research proves it and people all over the world vouch for it – there is something about the mighty Chocolate that makes people fall head over heels in love. And, I am proud to record here that I love it with every fibre of my being

When I was a young kid and this love story was in its nascent stages, I used to keep looking for ways of extracting money from my parents so that I could run to the nearby shop and put the money to chocolaty use. I had many cousins who were partners in crime and together, we would always manage to squeeze in a bar or two of 5-star almost every day. Life was heavenly, I say.

As I grew up a bit and money started flowing regularly in the form of monthly allowance, my love for chocolate grew manifold and it also became easy to express the feelings. To my horror, my cousins who used to stay in the same house, also got love struck in a similar fashion .And now that we had all grown up and become more aware of our rights, the camaraderie and sharing spirit of kiddo days was gone and chocolates stored in the fridge became a big reason for sibling rivalry. Parents tried to discipline, other elders tried to solve disputes amicably, family doctors tried to enlighten on the evil effects of the object of our affection but nothing could succeed in weaning me away.

School days over, I entered college and monthly allowance gained unexplainable proportions due to the endless demands of commuting, text books, clothes (parents understood the peer pressure) and all other necessities of a young college going girl. So, money supply ceased to be a consideration in buying the choicest of chocolates. In addition, that was also the era of software boom and sundry cousins and uncles and aunts travelling abroad in the name of providing those Americans and English, the much needed IT help. Needless to say, it was an unwritten rule for them to get back some of the “firangi maal” to impress those who were still living in the Neanderthal age in their own small town jungles. The love flourished and matured to embrace the exotic and the dark varieties that were hitherto inaccessible. It was a heaven on earth and a bigger and better one this time.

College and studies over, I joined the yuppie bandwagon of the earning professionals and nothing could come between me and my love now. By this time, parents had given up, cousins had found their own love in life, family doctors were no longer part of family and the empirical world also, it seems, was conspiring with the universe to create a whole new loveosphere for the lovely choc-O-late. Americans researched and found that it has got immense curative properties – good for warding off depression, better than aspirin for headache and works like wonder on heartache !Voila, suddenly my love got the redemption that it had been seeking all these years . The work trips abroad , own and those of colleagues, ensured the supply never ceases and taste buds keep getting developed to absorb more and more of the gooey sticky stuff which also came in finer versions that were less gooey and less sticky but equally sinful.

Cut to the present day, I got bitten by the cooking and baking bug and I discovered that I can be more self reliant now in my lovemaking. Life was never so easy …Got a sudden craving and the refrigerator seems to have none. No problem! Mix sugar, milk, cocoa and dish up my own stuff.

Now, my time is ticking and teeth are decaying, knees are wobbling and flab is sickening .However, the love for chocolate, I must say, is never ending and ever increasing!!