Of love and dreams to share. (Day 1)

Holy crap! It’s December! The last month of the year! Wha happuh???

Ok. I’ll deal…

But anyway, as a child, one of the (many) things that enthralled me about this time of year was the advent calendar. Which seems really strange, actually. I’ve always been the kind of person that needs nearly constant…stimulation, and let’s just say that if the ability to become bored quickly was an Olympic sport, I’d win the gold every time. So the idea that I was captivated by a cheap piece of card stock with twenty-five little dated die-cut doors all over it, each hiding some silly little depiction of holiday bacchanalia, is surprising to say the least. But it’s true. Oh how I loved opening that little door each day. The anticipation. And even if a particular day’s offering was less than thrilling (a pony? WTF???), there was always the consolation that the next day’s door would conceal something better. It was like the Let’s Make a Deal of holiday traditions.

And don’t think I went in for those fancy advent calendars, either. For me, it was the simpler the better. Any year that we ventured into the higher-concept varieties, I was left cold and longing for the simpler feel of cardboard and glitter. Believe it or not, I even preferred this to those high-falutin’ models that come with a piece of chocolate behind each door. Twenty-five days til Christmas, twenty-five little pieces of chocolate! What could be better, right? But after you’ve eaten the chocolate each day, you’re left with an empty little hole. Sad. Give me twenty-five colorful little drawings over twenty-five empty little holes any day.

So in tribute to those simpler times, and in light of the fact that I no longer have little cardboard doors to open, this blog is going to serve that very purpose for the next twenty-five days. Twenty-five virtual little doors will be opened, and twenty-five colorful little truths revealed. They are not planned out, and hence what lies behind each day’s little door will be as much a surprise for me as it is for you. I hope it’s fun. I think it will be. And when it comes to an end, another yule will have arrived; another year will have begun.

So without further ado, behind today’s little door is…chocolate. Ha! Didn’t see that coming, did you? But sure enough, that’s what’s there. Chocolate is one of my very favorite things. I love it in so many forms, for so many reasons. It’s rich and delicious, and dark and luxurious. And yet, it’s something so simple. You can get it everywhere, and everyone knows what it is. It’s nothing special, and I guess that’s what makes it so special. To me it’s one of the simplest of pleasures, and that’s what I’m reminded of when I eat it: the fact that pure pleasure and enjoyment can come in such a simple, delicious little package. An important thing to keep in mind. (Just don’t put it inside my advent calendar, thanks.)