Sipping Chocolate

It's safe to say that all of my good friends are those with whom I can enjoy a good meal. I don't mean good as in the size of the meal. I mean good as in the quality of the food, the time savored in appreciating it, the location of the meal, the conversation we share, you surely see where I'm going with this.

I just returned from my auntie's house. It was a really windy afternoon and I was irritated because I was cold and because I have done something to my ankle, and I cannot run or walk in high heels properly. You understand my frustration. I went over to her house because she called me saying she had something for me, not that I need an excuse to visit her. She was telling me a story and I interrupted her to request her famous sipping chocolate. Hopefully if you're reading this, you have experienced this drink or can interrupt me at some point and request that I make it for you. We bundled up, hopped in the car and ran to the local market to purchase half and half. We came back home and sat in the kitchen, chatting away as she whisked up one of her many specialties. It's half and half, solid chocolate (56%), coarse salt and a dash of vanilla. Served in thin, porcelain demitasse cups makes for an elegant affair. We curled up on the couch and sipped our food of the Goddesses accompanied by Spanish polverones (fine, Spanish, cinnamon, almond cookies). We talked and talked. Ranted and raved. The usual.

I remember the first thing I said when I took a sip, as I held the delicate cup about an inch away from my face so that I could still enjoy the olfactory part of the experience, was "I feel bad for people who don't ever do this."

I don't feel bad for them that they can't do it, but rather that they don't take the time to. I guess some people don't prioritize this kind of stuff and that's okay. I don't prioritize having fancy cars very high on my list of life ambitions, well I don't think having a fancy car is even on my list of ambitions. I don't prioritize having tons of money either, but I digress. I enjoy drinking extremely rich chocolate and talking with a person I love. And I hope you have something simple that you can do in your regular life that gives you great pleasure, that you don't feel guilty about, that is uninterrupted and enjoyed with every part of your being. I wish that for you, and for everybody.