women

Old, wrinkled and happy?

JOY journal

“Life is like a box of chocolates … you never know what you’re gonna get.” Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks)

As much as Americans are obsessed with living longer, it’s amazing how many people don’t want to be “old.” As a group, we will nip and tuck, weproxy.duckduckgo.jpgar rhinestones all over our backsides, dye our hair pink. Anything to not look old.

That’s why I laughed out loud when I saw the new ad for Dove dark chocolates. (And, no, I am not sponsored. I just love chocolate and good storytelling.) It’s a mini novel that begins with a little girl waking up in a room whose bedside table is topped with a couple of pink chocolate wrappers.

As French songstress Edith Piaf sings in the background (Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien), the girl’s story progresses rapidly from adolescent to young woman to old woman. We see her, in the same blue dress, playfully enjoying life every step of the way. At the end, the woman, now aged like a fine piece of silver, pops a chocolate into her mouth and looks at her wrinkled-yet-beautiful self in delight.

“Live each day as if it’s the only one,” the ad wraps up.

I guess there’s only so far you can take this advice. Pursuing pleasure to the point of doing whatever we want can land us in a heap of trouble, now and in eternity. But, there is great wisdom in actually living, one day at a time, and enjoying every season of life as it comes.

Kudos, Dove ad creators and Mars candy, for capturing such a life-affirming sentiment so beautifully. If you would like to see this ad, it is viewable at https://www.ispot.tv/ad/Arrw/dove-chocolate-each-and-every-day-song-by-edith-piaf.

Published by JOY journal

After a long career writing for local newspapers — and, on rare occasions, for publications such as The Washington Post — Nora's word life is now focused on blogging and occasional writing projects of special interest. Also the author of several books, Nora lives in Appalachia with her husband and a goodish dog named Finn, who is delighted whenever the family's two adult daughters are home from college.

23 thoughts on “Old, wrinkled and happy?”

  2. I admit to knowing a very few French songs, but this one is my all-time favorite. Anyone who knows the life story of Edith Piaf understands how connected she would be to this commercial. Living life is a far stretch from just surviving, something Edith knew well, especially at the beginning.

    Taking it one day at a time is probably best however, since chocolate or no, it’s hard to say what you’re going to get. Hopefully, with the bitter will come the sweet, with the struggle will come the surprises of a live worth actually living in the moment so as not to miss a single nugget. Thanks for sharing!!!

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    1. Hi Nora Edinger and Sparkyjen,

      Indeed, some chocolates are really irresistible! After reading and seeing so much about chocolate here, I shall have to increase my will power and to severely limit my consumption of chocolate and pastry and icecream. . . . . and to change from singing “Food glorious food” to “Fruits glorious fruits”.

      Given that the festive season is upon us, I would like to share with you

      Let’s share some amazing GOOD FOOD Up and Down our festive corridors, kitchens and dining rooms during this coming festive season with all that you can feast with your eyes at https://soundeagle.wordpress.com/2012/12/08/soundeagle-in-edible-art-glorious-food-and-festive-season/

      Happy December to you!

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      5. Hello Sparky! Thank you for your compliment here. I would like to inform you that your said comment is nowhere to be found at my website.

        Hi Nora! It is very nice and heart-warming indeed to know that your eyes have feasted on SoundEagle’s Glorious Food and Edible Art, especially those Rice Piggies, as you commented there with glee. 🙂

        Furthermore, I would like to wish both of you a most enjoyable festive season whilst resonating all of your festive spirits with mine at https://soundeagle.wordpress.com/2012/12/12/season-greetings-from-soundeagle-merry-christmas-happy-new-year-and-joyful-holiday/

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      8. Hello Sparky! Thank you for your reply. As mentioned earlier, and as you and anyone else can see clearly at the said post of mine as well as the “Conversing with SoundEagle” widget, there is no sign at all that you have left any comment on the said post or on any of its images. I am completely at a loss as to what caused you to think or believe otherwise that you have indeed left a comment on the veggie image.

        Please be informed that you might need to use a desktop or laptop computer with a large screen to view the rich multimedia contents available for heightening your multisensory enjoyment at my websites, some of which could be too powerful and feature-rich for iPad, iPhone, tablet or other portable devices to handle properly or adequately. A fast broadband connection is also helpful. 🙂

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      9. Well, I’m just flummoxed 😶. I know I wrote it so after checking, and you’re absolutely right, it’s nowhere to be found, so for now I’m quickly shrugging my shoulders, and taking note that the next time I decide to visit Sound Eagle, like, and or, leave a comment, I will use my [best quality/ largest screen on the market] desktop, or 💻[largest screen on the market] with my zippy high speed WiFi connection.

        Today, [that day too], I left/leaving comment using my iPad Pro, which usually suffices when my other tech is doing other work. Darn! And it was a super fantastic comment too, just don’t remember it now. Happy Holidays!

        Liked by 1 person

      10. Hi Sparky,

        Thank you for your clarification. If you indeed had typed out your comment at the time, then you could have been distracted and thought that you had hit the “Post Comment” button when in fact you had not done so. As mentioned, there was, and has been, no comment submitted from you.

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    1. Thanks!! Dark chocolate’s my favorite, too! I like it up to 85 percent cacao, but stay in the 70 percent range more often. (My husband once sprinkled sugar on piece of 85 percent that I shared.)

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    1. Sweet pretzels or salty? I might try it. My girl is dairy intolerant, so she can have a small amount of cheese on pizza, but not ice cream , she drinks soy milk. Cath

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      1. They get the salty pretzel sticks that are about 6-8 inches long. They melt the chocolate in the microwave (in short bursts, divided by stirrings to prevent burning) and pour it into a puddle on waxed paper. Twirl the pretzels through the chocolate quickly (covering all except a “handle”) and cool on cookie sheets lined with waxed or parchment paper. If you like, you can add flourishes like crushed candy canes or seasonally colored sprinkles while the sticks are cooling or a drizzle of dark chocolate striping after they are cooled. They are yummy and store very well in zip-locking bags. 🙂

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