‘Dedicated to Those Who Give up Chocolate for Lent’ by Tonia Kalouria The Society March 30, 2021 Culture, Humor, Poetry 16 Comments . A Box of Chocolates is like Life: (That Mrs. Gump she got it right.) You never know just what you’ll get, so take a chance: Jump in; don’t fret! Life’s Bittersweet—both dark and light— but with some luck, most bites you’ll like. It helps to read the Contents Card, as some rejects lie smiling, scarred. But “C’est la vie”: “C’est si bon—bon,” and even though you get some wrong . . . Still, Carpe diem!—and a plate. Nosh choco-early, choco-late. . . Tonia Kalouria, a former Spanish teacher and “soap” actress, is now a poet in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. Her most recent—and rhyming—poems appear in Literary Veganism and Fox Hollow Stories, and two anthologies: “Quoth the Raven” and “Poems from the Lockdown.” NOTE TO READERS: If you enjoyed this poem or other content, please consider making a donation to the Society of Classical Poets. The Society of Classical Poets does not endorse any views expressed in individual poems or commentary. CODEC Stories:Share this:Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Click to print (Opens in new window)Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) 16 Responses Theresa Cummings March 30, 2021 Simply Scrumptious! Thank you! Reply Tonia Kalouria March 30, 2021 Thanks Theresa! Reply Joe Tessitore March 30, 2021 And very witty! Reply Tonia Kalouria March 30, 2021 Thanks so much. Reply Yael March 30, 2021 As a chocolate lover I appreciate every line and rhyme of your poem, thank you. Just thinking about chocolate causes a glorious little dopamine release in my central nervous system, which will tide me over until tomorrow when I can have more chocolate, as I’ve already reached my limit of today’s allowance. I’ve never heard of giving up chocolate for lent though. Is that a cultural tradition? Reply Tonia Kalouria March 30, 2021 I’m guessing that the Chocolate Lenten deprivation is short lived:-) So happy you enjoyed the little homage. Reply C.B. Anderson March 30, 2021 Heh-heh. As a youngster, however, I was always more fond of vanilla, especially when it came to ice cream. But I’ve been known to devour a box of chocolates with all due haste, proving that I have no principles at all. Your poem today was every bit as sweet. Reply Tonia Kalouria March 30, 2021 Love your anecdote! Thanks for sharing. Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant March 30, 2021 Tonia, what a delicious treat of a poem. I love its playfulness… the mention of that marvelous Forrest Gump quote, “C’est si bon—bon” (very clever), and the choco-early/late of the closing line. I’m smiling – thank you! Reply Tonia Kalouria March 30, 2021 So glad I could bring a smile. Thanks! Reply Jan Darling March 30, 2021 Tonia – you nearly had me licking the screen. Yumbo! Reply Tonia Kalouria March 30, 2021 LOL! 🙂 Reply C R Joshi March 31, 2021 But “C’est la vie”: “C’est si bon—bon,” Can you elaborate this line, please Reply Tonia Kalouria March 31, 2021 Sure … The first clause translates to “That’s life,” and the second part adds: “It’s so good.” The second “bon” is wordplay: Life’s not just good — it’s good like a chocolate bon-bon, bringing us back to the theme: “Life is like a box of chocolates.” Reply James A. Tweedie April 1, 2021 Thank you Tonia. The season of Lent and humor do not always cross paths but your poem put a stop sign at the intersection and forced me to smile long enough to remember that with both life and Lent there is joy in the morning. As one preacher put it, “It’s Friday . . . but Sunday’s coming!” Amen. Reply Tonia Kalouria April 1, 2021 What a lovely comment. Thank you. Reply Leave a Reply to Tonia Kalouria Cancel ReplyYour email address will not be published.CommentName* Email* Website Captcha loading...In order to pass the CAPTCHA please enable JavaScript. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Notify me of new posts by email. Δ This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Yael March 30, 2021 As a chocolate lover I appreciate every line and rhyme of your poem, thank you. Just thinking about chocolate causes a glorious little dopamine release in my central nervous system, which will tide me over until tomorrow when I can have more chocolate, as I’ve already reached my limit of today’s allowance. I’ve never heard of giving up chocolate for lent though. Is that a cultural tradition? Reply
Tonia Kalouria March 30, 2021 I’m guessing that the Chocolate Lenten deprivation is short lived:-) So happy you enjoyed the little homage. Reply
C.B. Anderson March 30, 2021 Heh-heh. As a youngster, however, I was always more fond of vanilla, especially when it came to ice cream. But I’ve been known to devour a box of chocolates with all due haste, proving that I have no principles at all. Your poem today was every bit as sweet. Reply
Susan Jarvis Bryant March 30, 2021 Tonia, what a delicious treat of a poem. I love its playfulness… the mention of that marvelous Forrest Gump quote, “C’est si bon—bon” (very clever), and the choco-early/late of the closing line. I’m smiling – thank you! Reply
C R Joshi March 31, 2021 But “C’est la vie”: “C’est si bon—bon,” Can you elaborate this line, please Reply
Tonia Kalouria March 31, 2021 Sure … The first clause translates to “That’s life,” and the second part adds: “It’s so good.” The second “bon” is wordplay: Life’s not just good — it’s good like a chocolate bon-bon, bringing us back to the theme: “Life is like a box of chocolates.” Reply
James A. Tweedie April 1, 2021 Thank you Tonia. The season of Lent and humor do not always cross paths but your poem put a stop sign at the intersection and forced me to smile long enough to remember that with both life and Lent there is joy in the morning. As one preacher put it, “It’s Friday . . . but Sunday’s coming!” Amen. Reply
