This year I decided that for Lent — which began a week ago — I would give up candy. I’d been eating just a little too much of it since the holidays and decided to use this time to remind myself that candy is not food (not in the nourishment sense, anyway).
A week into Lent I can see that avoiding candy isn’t that hard. Once it’s out of our apartment and my desk drawers I can’t reach for it anyway. Out of sight, out of mind. So I’ve decided to increase the challenge a bit for this year and give up chocolate as well (chocolate in all its forms, not just candy). While I may be able to forget about other candy when it’s not staring me in the face, I never forget about chocolate. It’s always in my mind 
.
I observed Lent for the first time when I was a teenager. My family wasn’t religious and we aren’t Catholic, so I didn’t have a religious reason for doing it — I just thought it seemed like a cool idea (is it weird that as a teen I thought the idea of depriving myself of a favorite thing for a month seemed like a fun thing to do?). Anyway, for the first few years I observed Lent I always gave up chocolate, and for a few of those years I actually managed to go the entire period with no slip-ups. Forty solid days (46, actually) with no chocolate at all. Definitely one of the hardest things I’ve ever done!
So from now until Easter, no chocolate. At all. Lately I’ve been stirring unsweetened cocoa powder into my oatmeal — no more. No dipping into that jar of Nutella for a sweet fix. No chocolate chip cookies either 
. I will now commence dreaming about an Easter basket full of candy…
I’ve just given up sugar completely because I react so sensitively to it! It’s hard, but it doesn’t mean that chocolate is out completely, if you make it yourself. I’m thinking about making sugar free cocoa truffles and chocolate fudge for Easter, using cocoa powder and cream or coconut butter.
I really admire that! I’m not sure if I’d be ready for such a dramatic step, but cutting back on sugar is definitely a good idea. And chocolate without sugar is certainly still delicious, it just takes some getting used to.
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