Tag Archive for chocolate

Chocolate Me for Chocolate Day

July 7, 2020 Comments Off on Chocolate Me for Chocolate Day

To many of us, chocolate is comfort food. And, since we can all use some comfort, what better day than today, Chocolate Day? I hope you enjouy my little chocolaty poem:

CHOCOLATE ME

In my next life, I’ll be chocolate.

Sometimes nutty, sometimes smooth,

Sometimes bitter, sometimes sweet,

Or hiding a squishy center.

Harmless in moderation

But increasingly expensive.

A melting mess in warm hands

While maintaining my allure.

Adding weight to the over-burdened.

Raising spirits periodically.

Hazardous in extremes.

A cause of sibling rivalries

(Fighting over me!)

Plus a rapid thumping heart

And a crawling belly ache.

There will be those who want me gone,

Yet secretly crave more of me. 

Yes, that’s what I will be–

Sort of like I am now.

But in that day, when I’m chocolate,

Everyone will love me.

——- Jackie O’Donnell

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Sweet–and Fair–Fundraising

February 4, 2020 Comments Off on Sweet–and Fair–Fundraising

There’s a knock at the door.  It’s a youngster with chocolate bars.  You buy because you want to support the soccer team.  Warning: in your eagerness to help one group, you may be harming another.  Do you know where the cocoa beans came from?  Were the growers paid fairly for their work?  Enough to feed their families and meet basic needs?  Most likely, the workers, including very young children, are living in poverty in another country, and their hard work doesn’t earn them enough to climb out of hardship. 

Meanwhile, fundraisers enjoy big profits, passing on a tiny amount to your soccer kids.  Next time your group wants to raise money, suggest a compassionate alternative, Fair Trade Chocolate.  For example, there is Divine Fair Trade Chocolate, the first brand in the world to be farmer-owned (www.divinechocolate.com).  Or try one of these which are fair to the growers and kind to the earth: www.equalexchange.com, www.sweetearthchocolates.com,www.ChocolateBar.com, or www.VosgesChocolate.com.  Some offer discounts for fundraisers. 

What a deal — the kids raise money, social consciousness, and quality of life for families all at the same time!

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My Dreams are Sweet

January 20, 2020 Comments Off on My Dreams are Sweet

SWEET DREAMS

I had a dream—like Martin’s—
But in my dream
            Cats were leashed and dogs roamed free,
            The President was chosen by God,
            All days were sunny, with rain only at night,
            And the whole world loved chocolate.
In that dream
            My friend was interesting, not rich or Black,
            People talked to Gramps, not to me about him,
            Wheelchair basketball was on Monday night TV,
            And dinner was fair-trade chocolate.
Then I saw
            Doctors fighting to save all lives,
            Wardens taking none,
            Soldiers idly playing checkers,
            Now that bullets were just Hershey Kisses.
All that empty space:
            Soup kitchens, with no clients to serve,
            Sweatshops replaced by homes,
            Jails, since the Rule became Golden,
            Plus cups half-filled with cocoa.
I had a dream.  Like Martin,
When I wake
I refuse
To leave it behind.

                                        Jackie O’Donnell

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Pass Me That Mound of Chocolate

October 28, 2019 2 comments

Today is (believe it or not) National Chocolate Day. I admit, as a chocoholic, I don’t need a reason to eat chocolate. But I have one.

A study in England showed that employees who were given chocolate or shown videos of stand-up comics were actually 12% more productive.  So, my excuse for scarfing up chocolate (while watching a comic or not)–and you can use it, too–is that you have a whole bunch of stuff to get done.

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Easter and Chocolate Bunnies

April 17, 2019 Comments Off on Easter and Chocolate Bunnies

So, your non-Christian friends, in front of your children, are teasing you about how the chocolate bunnies, chicks, and eggs in your kids’ Easter baskets can’t have anything to do with Christ.  It’s time to explain the symbolism to them. 

In ancient times the rabbit (bunny) symbolized abundant new life, as do baby chicks.  And the egg, an ancient symbol of Spring, opens, releasing the chick, reminding us of Christ’s coming forth from the tomb.  Other indicators of new life are the flowers and baby animals often pictured in Easter settings.  Point out the beauty of God’s creation in the form of these Easter symbols, in the birds in the sky, in a newborn in your friends’ family, in the love given by grandparents, and in your garden, which, like Jesus, died but will be brimming with new life in Spring.  Focus the kids’ attention on the gift the Father gave us and that Jesus came to save for all eternity, the gift that must be honored and cherished in all its forms—life.

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Guilt-Free Chocolate

March 28, 2018 Comments Off on Guilt-Free Chocolate

What is the first secular thing that comes to mind with the word “Easter”?  Chocolate, of  course.  Chocolate eggs, chocolate bunnies…gobs of chocolate that make our minds twitch with guilty pleasure.

How about guilt-free chocolate?  The pounds may stay, but not regrets about how that yummy stuff got to us.  The same with coffee, tea, rice, sugar, juice, honey, wine, flowers, crafts–all sorts of things that often reach our homes through the mistreatment of people in other countries.  Many, often young children, work under harsh conditions to support their families.  But it’s the only work available.  The FAIR-TRADE MOVEMENT aims to change this, to provide employment, fair wages, decent conditions, and money that goes back into their communities for health and education.  This is not “free trade,” which is political, among nations, but “fair trade,” valuing the well-being of people.

Participate by buying products on-line (Google “Fair Trade”) or at Safeway, Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Cost Plus, Peet’s, Starbucks, and elsewhere.  Watch for the “Fair Trade” symbol on packages.  Ask the manager.  Make your interest known.  Then, maybe just one more nibble wouldn’t hurt….

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Guilt-free chocolate?

August 11, 2017 Comments Off on Guilt-free chocolate?

Guilt-free chocolate?  The pounds may stay, but not regrets about how that yummy stuff got to us.  The same with coffee, tea, rice, sugar, juice, honey, wine, flowers, crafts–all sorts of things that often reach our homes through the mistreatment of  people in other countries.  Many, often young children, work under harsh conditions to  support their families.  But it’s the only work available.  The FAIR-TRADE MOVEMENT aims to change this, to provide employment, fair wages, decent conditions, and money that goes back into their communities for health and education.  This is not “free trade,” which is political, among nations, but “fair trade,” valuing the well-being of people.  Participate by buying products on-line (Google “Fair Trade”) or at Safeway, Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Cost Plus, Peet’s, Starbucks, and elsewhere.  Watch for the “Fair Trade” symbol on packages.  Ask the manager.  Make your interest known.  Then, maybe just one more nibble wouldn’t hurt….

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Sweet and Fair

February 11, 2017 Comments Off on Sweet and Fair

You still have a few days to find the perfect chocolate for your Valentine—fair trade chocolate that promotes social, economic, and environmental projects, protecting both the workers and the Earth.  Look for the Fair Trade label on products where you shop.

Leaf 6

[For more easy, money-saving, Earth-friendly tips, download a FREE copy of Green Riches: Help the Earth & Your Budget. Go to www.Smashwords.com/books/view/7000 or your favorite e-book seller and download to your computer or e-book device. Totally free, with no strings attached.]

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I Have a Dream, Too

January 16, 2017 Comments Off on I Have a Dream, Too
 .

 

                          SWEET DREAMS

 

I had a dream—like Martin’s—
But in my dream
            Cats were leashed and dogs roamed free,
            The President was chosen by God,
            All days were sunny, with rain only at night,
            And the whole world loved chocolate.

 

In that dream
            My friend was interesting, not rich or Black,
            People talked to Gramps, not to me about him,
            Wheelchair basketball was on Monday night TV,
            And dinner was fair-trade chocolate.

 

Then I saw
            Doctors fighting to save all lives,
            Wardens taking none,
            Soldiers idly playing checkers,
            Now that bullets were just Hershey Kisses.

 

All that empty space:
            Soup kitchens, with no clients to serve,
            Sweatshops replaced by homes,
            Jails, since the Rule became Golden,
            Plus cups half-filled with cocoa.

 

I had a dream.  Like Martin,
When I wake
I refuse
To leave it behind.

                                        Jackie O’Donnell

 


					

									


				
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Chocolate that is NOT So Sweet

			
				
	October 14, 2016
	 
	Comments Off on Chocolate that is NOT So Sweet


				
				

										
Hershey, Mars, Nestle, ADM Cocoa, Godiva, Fowler’s Chocolate, Kraft……Do they make your favorite candy?  Are you thinking of buying some for Halloween?  Before you do, read “Beware of These 7 Popular Chocolate Brands that Exploit Child Slaves.”  


Read about the $1 billion+ spent on this holiday on chocolate, plus the lawsuit, and the children who are enslaved and beaten.


Then decide what candy to buy.


 

					

									


				
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