October is Halloween month. Or at least that’s how our holidays our defined here in the USA. At least a month before any national holiday, walk into any grocery store and you will see aisles dedicated to that holiday. The candy has been out in droves since at least the beginning of October, and I have had my eye on it ever since.
Growing up, my dad had a sweet tooth, and our house was always stocked with candy, cookies, cakes and ice cream. In a way, it normalized sugary snacks, and I never felt the need to binge. On the other hand, I developed a sweet tooth of my own and have a hard time resisting anything chocolate or crunchy sweet.
I eyed the chocolates that come in snack sizes as they began to pile up all over our local grocery store. Last week, when Kit Kats went on sale, I bought a bag, allegedly for the trick or treaters that will come tomorrow night. I hope only four show up, because I ate most of the bag. What’s better than chocolate after a nice hot bowl of vegetable soup? Or hot oatmeal in the morning? Or a veggie casserole at night? Kit Kats are the best dessert, and snack-size means one must eat at least two to be satisfied. Hence the almost empty bag.
So, I started thinking about the whole charade we play with the Halloween candy. Who is it really for? How many of us fool ourselves into believing that the treats are only for the costumed kids that come around on the 31st of October? How many have finished several snack-sized bags of candy before Halloween? Who really needs an excuse to buy candy? Why can’t we just buy and eat what we want without feeling like we need an excuse? How many of sneak candy from our own kids who go out trick or treating? Why all this deception??
While I did buy the candy for the children who will visit my home tomorrow night, I also bought a chocolate that I liked because I knew I would eat and enjoy it. I like the snack size because it’s often just enough to satisfy that chocolate craving. Okay, so even if I eat two, it’s still a small portion. And I don’t binge because I don’t feel guilty or sneaky about my desire for the chocolate treats.
I realized last night that my bag was almost empty and I will need to restock today. This time, maybe I’ll buy some treats that I don’t crave as much. Hmmm, what could that be? Not much that I don’t like. Laffy Taffys are not so appealing. Okay, sold!
Who’d you buy that candy for and how much of it is still in your cabinet?
