The Other 364 Days

After sheepishly apologizing for being a bad daughter and wishing them a happy Valentines and anniversary, I asked, “So, what did you do for your 25th anniversary?”

“Well,” my dad mused. “Your mom went to a prayer meeting, while I stayed home to work on this week’s sermon. And then she boiled me some squid for dinner, and we watched a Korean historical drama together.”

“Eh?” I said. “Isn’t that what you guys do every day?”

“That’s right,” my dad chortled, “Because every day is an anniversary for us!”

Oh Lordie. Talk about clichés. I rolled my eyes. “Dad, can’t you buy mom some roses for once?”

My dad’s lack of romantic gestures aside, I was secretly rather touched. My dad has never bought my mom a box of chocolates, or even a single rose for neither their anniversary nor Valentines. But he does shower her with plenty of love every single day, and so does my mom to him. They take care of each other: my dad warms up my mom’s hands and feet by rubbing them for her, my mom warms him up with a bowl of homemade kimchi (or miso) stew. 

Looking at my parents’ marriage, I believe that Love is the most precious and most beautiful gift. But it’s also the hardest, because it isn’t a one-day or one-time thing. You don’t tell someone you love that person, and then promptly forget about him/her. You don’t say “I love you” to someone each morning, and yet ignore him/her when he/she needs you most. You don’t kiss and hug someone during special occasions, only to treat him/her badly most of the time.

Love isn’t a four-letter word. It needs to translate to real and consistent action. Even if you feel love inside, it means nothing if you don’t show it.

I’m guilty of this myself. I may claim to love someone…but when I look back to my actions, they just don’t match with my words. I’m reluctant to spend too much of my “precious” time on them; I get exasperated when they are weak; I vent on them when I’m in a bad mood.

Valentines may be over, but how do you celebrate love for the remaining 364 days? You might have spent big bucks on a Valentines gift for your loved ones…but do you give them the more priceless gift of daily love and kindness? Sweet gifts like chocolates and flowers are nice, but they get a bit saccharine if you do it daily. It’s kind of like sweet and savory foods. I know most of you love your desserts…but can you eat them for all three meals of the day? Sooner or later, those sweet stuff starts to cloy and you’ll get sick of them. Their monotone sweetness just isn’t as substantial and nourishing as real, savory foods.

Likewise, it’s the real, practical gestures that sticks to you: the time, effort, and care you consistently show to your loved ones.

But of course, those occasional treats are really pleasing. Which is what I try to tell my dad, but after 25 years, he feels it’ll only be awkward to suddenly buy my mom a bouquet of roses. As I said, my dad is no Casanova.

And neither am I. Actually, romantic guys kind of turn me off. I’d rather have a husband who bickers and debates with me than a husband who surprises me with cute gifts. Maybe that’s why I don’t really have a sweet tooth. But I have to say, sometimes, I do crave something sweet. Especially on a long day like Wednesdays.

You see, Wednesday is my Yucky Day. I have classes non-stop from 9 am to 4 pm, and one of them is the dreaded lab. By the middle of the day, I’m tearing at my hair, screeching, “Kill me now!” 

Okay, I exaggerate. But you know what I mean. And I found out that the remedy to this is actually quite simple: I simply treat myself to a sweet treat. Thus, I’ve decided to make every Wednesday a Sweet Treat Wednesday, and I’d love it if you all will join me.

But here’s the catch: It’s gotta be a real treat. As in: no low-fat, low-sugar, whole grain crap. No baking your own healthified imitations with almond flour and coconut oil and NuStevia. No dainty 1-inch pieces of organic dark chocolate. Come on, it’s just a once-in-a-week treat— you can afford to indulge in something delicious with real butter and sugar! So, every week, I’ve decided to post a Sweet Treat Wednesday. It can be any form of favorite sweet treat: cookies, muffins, croissants, pies, brownies. The goal is to help me survive through the long hump day, and also to celebrate real indulgence. Because God knows we deserve it!

In another bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, green tea powder, baking powder, and salt. Grate in the butter, and then blend the grated butter into the dry mixture with your fingers.

Blend in the egg/sour cream mixture, just until moistened. Don’t overmix! Finally, stir in the sesame seeds.

Turn the dough out into a greased baking sheet, and shape it into two rounds, about 3/4 inch disks. Brush half-and-half over the surface of the dough, and sprinkle with sugar to coat. Cut into 8 wedges for each disk.

Here’s the groovy things about these bars of cacao crack: They are pure, raw cacao. As in, uncooked, and not refined in the least. They are also certified vegan, organic, and kosher, so they’ll please the pickiest sweet tooth. It’s free of soy, dairy, gluten, and refined sugar, so they’re low-glycemic, too. Which means…no after-sugar crashes! They’re the health-nut-with-a-sweet-tooth’s dream come true!

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my Organic Nectars chocolates. Even the 85% was an interesting experience. My favorite was the raspberry and the 54% cacao, which I thought was the perfect balance of bitterness and sweetness. Organic Nectars really instigated the dormant chocolate-lover in me. I was not a big chocolate fan, but these products have brought out the chocolate-snob in me. I won’t ever be satisfied with Hershey’s milk chocolate again!

Well, Wednesday is almost over. Happy Hump Day, dear readers, and I hope you get your sweet treat of the week! I’m actually not at all confident that many will join me on Sweet Treat Wednesday…but that’s okay, I’m still going to celebrate it each week…but if you do happen to join me, let me know so I won’t be too lonely.

Question of the day: How do you show daily love and appreciation to your loved ones? Also,let’s pretend that you’ll be joining me for Sweet Treat Wednesday…what will you be having? A buttery, toasted croissant? A big wedge of banana cream pie? I wanna hear them!