My sister and I spent our childhoods in a small town. Mom worked hard at her job from morning till evening — but not before sending us off to school early with our not-so-heavy bags and our lunch boxes with simple, wholesome meals. Even though we went through tough times, providing my sister and I with the best possible education remained a big priority for our mother. Education before everything else was her belief, even though it meant most of her hard-earned money was spent paying our school fees. We were always careful and economical, but somehow we never felt a sense of deprivation (贫困) in our lives.
Life for us moved at this easy, contented pace until, of course, our birthdays approached. Honestly, I did not look forward to the gifts as much as I did sharing Moms handmade chocolates, wrapped (被包裹) in shiny, colorful paper, with my classmates. Fifteen minutes before lunch, our teacher would allow us todistributethe candy. And out came the box from its hiding place under my books-and with a smile on my face and a happy heart, I would hand over two chocolates each to my friends. Then, I would rush out of the room just to enjoy the pleasure of hearing them open up the wrappers and the mouth-watering chocolates in pure delight. They would then ask me if there were a few more until I ran out of these treats entirely. Year after year, I followed the same ritual (仪式) — and it pleased me to no end each time I heard my friends say that these chocolates were unlike any they had ever tasted.
The years passed by, and as our kids grew up, they too gifted chocolates to their friends at school on their birthdays. However, none of the chocolates I offered to my child could match what Mom always had for us. Until the year Mom visited us on my child's birthday and brought along her famous chocolates. After so many years, I finally realized the secret of the chocolate's evergreen taste: sugar and peanuts cooked to perfection and filled with motherly affection and love in wrappers saved over months. Indeed, the best birthday treat I had ever tasted!
