œDid you just give her the family discount?
œYeah, she’s my neighbor. I’m trying to work on my karma.
œDo you even know what karma is?
œYeah. It means she owes me one.
And that would be a quote from one of my favorite movies; Me and You and Everyone We Know. The character in the movie is obviously a little misguided in the meaning of Karma, or the belief that “what goes around, comes around”.
Although the line is amusing, sadly, it rings true. It seems that many people are afraid to do something simply because it is a nice thing to do. Instead they want to know “what’s in it for them” before they go out of their way for someone else.
I have made it a personal goal to do something for someone else on a daily basis. These random acts of kindness have been greatly rewarding; for them and for me. It is an amazing feeling to do something that you know has made someone else’s day without expecting anything in return.
Being the foodie that I am, I decided to be a little more specific in my karma-ing. So for the past few weeks I’ve been experimenting to see if I could produce some culinary karma. Here’s what I’ve found.
I started, of course, with chocolate.
Dished out karma:
After hearing that a coworker’s husband kept eating all of her favorite dark chocolate, I left two dark chocolate bars on her desk. This was to be her personal stash that she could keep at work, far away from the grasp of her husband.
The delicious result:
Two weeks later she gave me some adorable little apples called Lady Apples. She knew that I pick through the apple crate at the farmer’s market to find the smallest or most deformed ones because I feel sorry for them. This little gift was thoughtful, super sweet and they were cute as a button¦ or as, well, a miniature apple. It’s amazing what a little chocolate can do!
Dished out karma:
I have a total crush on these little Mexican wedding cookies at Sprazzo. They are buttery, pecan bites of goodness and they make me very happy. I have made it a goal to buy one for someone whenever I am in the store so they can taste happiness.
The unknown result:
I keep hoping my next paycheck envelope will be filled with thousands of these petite, scrumptious cookies. So far it hasn’t happened, but I know that I have helped put smiles on the faces of everyone who has tasted them.
Dished out karma:
At the all-you-can-eat Thanksgiving dinner I recently ate at with my mother and father (our family celebrated as a full unit on Saturday this year) I had a mousse-off with a woman at the dessert buffet.
My mom said she wanted the mousse and there was only one left that looked good enough to eat. I grabbed it out from under another woman who was looking at them. This was not very nice, but I had to get it for my mom.
The negative result:
The mousse wasn’t good at all. The only thing good about it was the chocolate and mint sticks that garnished it. The universe had punished me with a bad tasting mousse (I didn’t think this was even possible) for snagging the dessert out from under another person… I just know it.
So these are just a few examples of food related karma-ings. I will continue to dish out some foodie channeled karma in the upcoming weeks and document what I can. I am sure I will never know the result of all the foodie goodness that is put out there but my hope is that it is passed on and on and on so, eventually, everyone will get a “taste.”
The Final Dish: Keep the universe positively yummy and pass on the good karma to people in your life.
Lady Apples are available at Whole Foods
821 Lancaster Ave
Wayne, PA 19087
Phone: 610.688.9400
www.wholefoods.com
Mexican Wedding Cookies are available at Sprazzo
Sprazzo Cafe
27 N. High St.
West Chester, PA 19380
610.344.7435
www.sprazzocafe.com
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