3/24/11

Moral Dilemma. Need Advice. Involves chocolate.


What would you do?

Say your husband and daughter return from New York with several small--emphasis on small--boxes of chocolate from La Maison Du Chocolat. Say said chocolates are possibly the best chocolates in the world. Say they are handmade in Paris, France and flown daily to NYC and that, therefore, the guaranteed freshest La Maison Du Chocolat chocolates are the ones that are hand delivered to you by your husband and daughter.

Now say that your husband says one of the boxes, which is very, very small, is for the family that leant your daughter a winter coat. But say that your husband and daughter already got the girl to whom the coat belongs a lovely little bracelet with pictures of New York City on it.

Would you, being practical, rethink the giving of the small, almost nonexistent, box of chocolates? I mean, first of all, one must think of feelings. The girl is already getting a bracelet. Wouldn't it seem too much to give the chocolates--of which there are soooo few--as well? Wouldn't it put an uncomfortable pressure on the family? A feeling of the thank you being greater than the favor? You wouldn't want to make the family feel awkward, would you? I mean, that would be the last thing you would want to do. And you certainly wouldn't want them to fight over the chocolates. You would not want to return a good deed with family friction.

So wouldn't it make sense to keep the small box? If you can even call it a box. It being so small, really only enough for one grown woman (not even her children, who, let's face it, eat way too much sugar as it is). Wouldn't it be the ethical thing to keep that box and also, for safety sake, hide it in a box of pens? I mean you don't want the chocolates to become a weapon in the escalating war of sibling rivalry. That would almost be abusive.

Hmmm. Just wondering how you would play this?

24 comments:

Wendy Claire Barrie said...

I'd eat the chocolates. Immediately. Slowly enough to enjoy them, but not so slowly that I'd get, em, caught.

Tony Van Helsing said...

You don't really need advice, I can see you already justifying keeping the chocolates to yourself.
These do sound like good chocs though, she let you borrow a coat and she's getting a bracelet for that anyway so I think you can keep chocs guilt-free.

Cafe Pasadena said...

Wash your hands of the chocolate: Just give them to me. Your dilemma is solved.

And, nice sweet and tasty picture.

Tammy said...

hmmm...that certainly is a dilemma that I wouldn't care to try and resolve...thank for the giggle.

Sarah said...

A box of chocolates that small might even be an insult to the family that so generously loaned a whole, entire coat. You should probably just eat them to save starting a feud.

Vanda said...

What dilemma? The only responsible choice is to eat said chocolate.

Rois said...

Eat the chocolates, burn the box and avoid a feud.You would not want to have to change your last name to McCoy or Hatfield would you?

Olga said...

Obviously those chocolats are an inapropriate gift for anyone but an adult woman. Of course you should not just gobble them down. Horrors! It's all about the exquisite pleasure of rich chocolate melting on gently awakening tastebuds. (This orgasmic experience is what makes them such an inappropriate gift for a young girl.) Savor each one. So, of course, you will need to hide them. I always found my underwear drawer a most effective hiding place for such treasures.
Margaret, you crack me up.

Curly said...

I'd eat them! That would be the solution to all your questions! :-DDDDDDDDD

Jean Spitzer said...

Storage would not be a problem.

It would be a shame to let them go stale.

Deb @ PaperTurtle said...

Hands down, no question: the chocolate is YOURS Margaret! And if I'm wrong I'm in good company. ;o)

Margaret said...

Wendy: Yes. Hiding the box is difficult since others know of its existence. But am I prepared to do this slowly?

Atiyanna: I'm glad you do have such a dilemma on your hands. Thanks for the visit.

Sarah: Yes! Do I really want to be responsible for feuding? I think not.

Vanda: And you know, I do take my responsibilities seriously.

Olga: So hiding the box from the children is what a good mother would do. I think you're right.

Jean: You raise, perhaps, the best point of all. It would be criminal to let them go stale. Who knows when I could actually get these to their original intendees. I could be months!

JCK said...

The only moral choice is to keep the chocolates. Girls do not enjoy and treasure chocolate as women do. Must. Have. To. Have.

And, you better eat them before we land on your doorstep...

Watson said...

I'll be right over to help you solve the "problem"! :-)

Joanne said...

Chocolate? What chocolate? I'm sure by now they're gone ...

Pammie said...

I hope by now that you have eaten them and blamed the husband.

Desiree said...

I say it's better for you to fly to Paris and buy a big box, all for yourself.
Let me know if you need company.

Wait, you've got money for car repairs and school bills--fly to Paris

wv: gatica. Obviously I'm writing sci fi

Petrea Burchard said...

Margaret, you said the chocolates (hand made in Paris, France!) were "hand delivered to you by your husband and daughter," and you made reference to hiding the chocolates in "a box of pens."

This is clearly the fault of your husband and daughter. They brought, directly to you, hand delivered, a box of hand made French chocolates so small it could be hidden in a box of pens. What do they expect? This is their moral dilemma, not yours. If they want to give chocolates to other people, they shouldn't bring them to you first.

Najma Velshi said...

Eat them-and then blame it on the goddesses!

Margaret said...

Pammie: That would actually work. He has a history of stealing all the good leftovers.

Petrea: You are absolutely right. It was cruel of them to put me in this postion. Although, to be fair, my daughter is all for us keeping said chocolates.

Najma: How about I eat them to honor the goddesses!

claire bangasser said...

I would reflect on the dilemma, slowly eating one chocolate at a time, pondering what to do with the box.
If the chocolates are as good as they seem to be, i would hope on the next plane to New York to get a set of much bigger boxes of the said chocolates.
One can never have too much of a good thing.

Star said...

heh heh heh, great title, great text, subject took me by surprise, and that was fun, too!

Susan Campisi said...

I am so late. You're probably in France at this very moment working your way through a large box of said chocolates with Dez. Je suis jalouse!

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