That First Spoonful

A surefire way of not eating ice cream, especially at night, is not to have it in the house. So you can imagine my delight this evening while rummaging about in the freezer I found an unopened pint of Ben and Jerry’s. This was nothing short of amazing. I have no idea how long it had been hiding behind boxes of frozen lima beans. Well, surely a spoonful would not hurt. I broke the seal and jammed a spoon into the unbroken surface. A half pint later I came back to reality and realized what I was doing. “Oh, well,” I thought, “it was only half the container and the container says, “Calories – 380.” So that was only 190. But wait a minute. It said “per serving.” How many servings could there be in a pint? It said, “Four.”

“Four!!!” “Who in the world thinks a quarter of a pint is a serving?” I ate a total of 760 calories.

Well there it was. Psalm 1:1. That verse keeps coming back to me over and over. It says, “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.”
It is the progression of sin. You walk by it, stop and look. Next you sit right down in it. Alcoholics know all about this. It is a lesson we all need to learn. If there is something we are trying not to do. Staying completely away is the only safe way.

If only I had not taken that first spoonful.

Written by Roger Bothwell on October 9, 2003
Spring of Life, 151 Old Farm Rd. Leominster, MA 01453