Le Chocolat

My rock candy passion is bittersweet / And armed to the teeth / Cuz she would rather fall in chocolate / Than fall in love / Especially with me ~Owl City, The Yacht Club

I love chocolate.

Again with the trite statements. I feel as though every chocolate product in the world has just cringed at the disservice those words have done to them.

Chocolate may be one of the most genius culinary inventions in the known world.

There is something so wonderfully smooth, delicate, and rich about the flavour...the texture...the memories and delight that even the word "chocolate" concocts in the human brain.

No wonder it is said to bring up fancies of love and affection...no wonder men use these delicate morsels to conjure pictures of romance.

Indeed, it is romance in edible form.

After I learned last night that I was the winner of a four-pack pound of eccentric and deliciously quirky fudge from Jewel of the Lion, courtesy of the beautiful Lucia at From Under my Little Umbrella...

...I began to contemplate upon the subject of this tasty delight.

I have decided that I want to be like chocolate.

In it's barest form...in the bean pod from which it is created...chocolate is one of the most undesirable flavours in this world. It is bitter, harsh and sharp against the palate, and not at all something one would want to put even remotely near their lips.

And in my barest form...oh, how sharp and bitter I am. I know from past experience that I can indeed push people away from me because of my harshness.

I am not sweet or smooth. I am harsh and vile.

Photo: It's a Dream Sampler Pack (my winnings,

but not these flavours)

Courtesy of Jewel of the Lion

I am undesirable.

It takes work.

The heat of adversity.

Being willing to break down...to not be so hard and locked away in my own shell of bitterness...

...it takes pain and struggle.

But in the end, my King has transformed me.

From bitter to delicious.

He has made me precious. Well-received and beloved.

And with each passing day, I become sweeter.

Like chocolate.

I prefer to regard a dessert as I would imagine the perfect woman:  subtle, a little bittersweet, not blowsy and extrovert.  Delicately made up, not highly rouged.  Holding back, not exposing everything and, of course, with a flavor that lasts.  ~Graham Kerr

Lundi (Monday)

I'll dissolve when the rain pours in / When the nightmares take me / I will scream with the howling wind / 'Cause it's a bitter world and I'd rather dream...Dizzy love turned a star lily pink / And hung above our lids too flushed to blink...I sang my princess fast asleep / 'Cause she was my dream come true...~Owl City, Lonely Lullaby

Once again, another Monday has come around the bend.

And once again, I feel blessed to have awoken this morning.

My decision to keep my Mondays positive (which can be read about more in this post) has been one of the more intriguing aspects of my week. All throughout the week, I've caught myself noting things that I could mention in regards to my "Monday morning blessings."

It's starting to make an impact on more than just the first day of the week.

The rest of my days are starting to catch up...

...for how can I be lost in my own despair when I am continually making note of those gifts which surround me each morning as I arise, and follow me through each movement of the earth around the sun?

• 8. Every single breath I take. (Yes, this one may seem to be rather cliche...however, with the occurances of this past week, particularly over the weekend...this is something for which I dare not fail to give thanks and count as a mighty blessing.)

• 9. Celebrating the end of an era with a small collection of my dearest and most nerdy of Harry Potter-head friends...and even making a few new ones as well...being able to weep openly in a room full of people who know exactly what I'm feeling, as they are all feeling it, as well

• 10. Having one dearest, loving companion in particular who poured themself out before our Father on my behalf...there is no greater honour, and no greater gift that I could receive than to be lifted to the Throne when I myself am too weak to stand.

• 11. The continual blessings I have received regarding July's Inspirational Giveaway, and all those giveaways that are yet to arrive in the coming months

• 12. Finding my missing silver Hedwig earring! Yes, perhaps this is a small thing, but I had been looking for this small treasure for quite some time, and it reappeared right next to my toe after almost two weeks of searching.

• 13. A book read so many times that the pages are worn, and the corners are dog-eared with love. 

• 14. Beautiful, odd, and melodramatic dreams of brilliant colours and unspoken wishes...filling my nighttime hours with sweetness instead of screams.

Yes, perhaps this is an odd collection of beauty.

But these are my blessings, and I will continue to count them until I run out...

...which I know will never occur.

 "When I'm worried / and I can't sleep / I count my blessings / instead of sheep / and I fall asleep / counting my blessings..." ~Irving Berlin, Count Your Blessings (White Christmas)

Embrace

Millions and millions of years would still not give me half enough time to describe that tiny instant of all eternity when you put your arms around me and I put my arms around you.  ~Jacques Prévert

There is something utterly magical about a hug.

Really, the above statement reads so trite to me compared to the depth of emotion that is packed into those words...

...it almost seems a shame to even write those words. 

I feel as though I am doing every hug in the world a mighty disservice. 

There is something remarkable that happens when one person puts their arms around another. 

It is inexplicable...

...and it's one of my favorite things in the world. 

Whether it's a loving touch from your mother after you've had one of the worst days of your life, and all you want is comfort...

... a soft caress from someone you deeply care about, and who you know cares about you more than anything else, and can feel when your heart is about to shatter into a million pieces...

...an affection-laden bear hug from a guy who's been as close as a brother since high school...

...or a still-awaited embrace from your sister who's only been in Germany for a month and still has another 2 months to go before she comes back home. 

Every last one of these touches has power in them.

The power to comfort.

To reassure.

To demonstrate the utmost of tender love and affection...

...sometimes more than words can say. 

If you're angry at a loved one, hug that person.  And mean it.  You may not want to hug - which is all the more reason to do so.  It's hard to stay angry when someone shows they love you, and that's precisely what happens when we hug each other.  ~Walter Anderson

Citrus

Orange eclipse, I can taste your lips / In the citrus afternoon / If you can fly, don't stop at the sky / 'Cause there's footprints on the Moon ~Owl City, Yacht Club


This was a very citrus afternoon. 


After juicing all those limes yesterday, it was little to no work at all to combine their lip-puckering sweetness with a few other ingredients. 


Two key lime pies now sit in my refrigerator, patiently awaiting their raspberry-syrup-and-whipped-creme-topped debut at tomorrow's family 4th of July celebration. 


(If you want the recipe I used, check out Olivia's blog here. For my own lime-juicing adventures, check out yesterday's post!)


Summer and citrus truly do go hand in hand. 


Lemonade on a sultry hot day, sitting on a porch swing with your best friend, laughing and sipping your tart beverage as the ice clinks gently against the glass...


...a sweet lemon ice and fresh raspberry smoothie, toes wiggling just under the surface of a relative's swimming pool, the breeze blowing just enough to cool your skin and ruffle your hair...


...and yes, even a slice of fresh, homemade key lime pie on the 4th of July, enjoying the sour-sweet firework show occurring on your tongue, a delightful precursor to the firework show coming when the sun finally slips below the horizon and the American sky goes navy blue. 


Perhaps I will forever associate my own patriotism with the aroma and taste of key lime pie, and with the feel of fingers made wrinkling by the acidic juice sinking into my skin. 

One of my own finished pies
Photo by DramticElegance

Perhaps summer will always be citrus fireworks to me.


Perhaps that is how it should be.


Because isn't that what summer is, really?


A combination of the bitter and sweet...moments of joy as lifetime memories are made, and outstretched fingers of heartbreak as so many things change. 


Summer is tart and acidic. 


Beautiful and full of sweetness and life. 


Summer is citrus.


And that's how it will always be. 


I wish that we could sail our sad days away / Forever / In deep blue seas of paper mâché / Let's dance in the moonlight / A barracuda chased our dog days away / Forever / Let's sink or swim 'til we fall in love / And dance in the moonlight / When we join the yacht club. ~Owl City, Yacht Club

Fresh

A table, a chair, a bowl of fruit and a violin; what else does a man need to be happy? ~Albert Einstein 


Turning me loose in a grocery store in midsummer is dangerous. 


The bushels, baskets, and various bins filled to the brim with fresh fruit is almost enough to send me into a whirl of delight. 


There is something about the kiss of fresh fruit juice against my tongue, flowing down my throat in a rush of fluid sweetness, that is just the epitome of summertime refreshment. 


Can you imagine a world without the tart sweetness of kiwis and raspberries...


...the acidic refreshment of pineapples and oranges...


...the pure lusciousness of cherries and strawberries...


...the overflowing juiciness of peaches and mangoes...


...what kind of world would this be to live in without the tantalizing refreshment of fruit?


So much joy can be found in wandering through the fragrant orchards, groves, and berry patches of spring and summertime...wicker basket in hand, surrounded by luscious freshness waiting to be picked.  


The gifts from Heaven are abundant in nature -- love and affection from friends, summery breezes and the softness of grass between my toes...the list goes on and on. 


But fruit?


This is a gift that was once our downfall and is now our delight. 


The shame that was brought on mankind by a sinful bite will be renewed in the Garden of the Lord. 


Fruit is more than a summertime pleasure.


It is a reminder of things to come in the Heavenly realms.


And this increases its delight tenfold. 


"Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse..." ~Revelation 22:1-3

Fleurs et du Thé (Flowers and Tea)

Flowers are the sweetest things God ever made, and forgot to put a soul into.  ~Henry Ward Beecher


The attributes of summer are endless.


I've probably written ten posts so far just on the glories of summertime, and each little wonder just waiting to be uncovered with each fluttering breeze...


...each one more hypnotizing and more beautiful than the next. 


Fireflies and fresh air...sunsets and dust motes captures in rays of brilliant sunlight...cotton sundresses and bare feet...Jane Austen novels and the tartness of lemonade...all set to the tune of Regina Spektor and Owl City.


Can it get any better than this?


Oh yes, I truly think so.


I honestly believe that any of these beautiful attributes of summer can be amplified with a steaming mug of tea and a wandering stroll through a floral-scented garden.


There is magic found in the bottom of a mug of tea. 


There is whispers of fairy dust and early morning mystery found in dew drops clinging to daisy petals. 


Whether it's curled up in a soft leather chair in a local coffee shop, Harry Potter between my fingertips and a flower tucked behind my ear...


...or standing in the middle of a wide open field, soft grass between my toes and a straw hat hanging down my back, my hair long and loose in the wind and a blanket spread and waiting beneath a maple tree...


...it's that fragrance of tea and rose petals that lingers...


...and that turns even the most commonplace of locations into a summertime fairyland. 

tea leaves

                                                                                                  tea loves

loves tea

lives tea

leaves tea?

never.

~Uniek Swain