Don’t Take Ice Cream For Granted

Just like most people, my favorite dessert is ice cream. As a kid, I would get ice cream once a week with my mom and dad during the summer. My sister and I would save up all of our gift cards and cash to go get ice cream on Sundays before the week started. It is one of my favorite memories as a kid. This is not necessarily about the ice cream.

As an eight year old I was sitting there and minding my own business just enjoying my ice cream until I made one mistake–taking it for granted. All I knew was that I wanted to have my cake batter ice cream and eat it too. Looking back, the best part was not the ice cream, it was hanging out with my family and building memories. We would always get our ice cream at the store down the street, Fielder’s Choice. We would always sit at the same plastic bench under the oak tree that we named Gerald. The bench was right next to the little playground next door. I remember one of the best ice cream memories was when we spent the whole time telling stupid, lame dad jokes. We would even make it into a contest.

“What’s ET short for?” My dad always said the first dad joke.

“Um… extra terrestrial?”

“Because he’s only got tiny legs!” We all groaned. What a terrible joke, I thought. But there was feeling of contentment. I had no troubles or worries on my mind being eight after all; I had no bills to pay, no votes to take, no mouths to feed. All I could think was, I want some more ice cream.

“Okay my turn, what’s the best time to go to the dentist?” My mom always told the most basic dad jokes on the planet.

“Tooth-hurty!” ARossignol27 and I said at the same time. My mom shook her head at us but then burst into giggles. We ended our ice cream time with sore stomachs–as happy for the ice cream as the time we spent together.

This summer, I stopped doing ice cream Sundays with my family. Without my mom here, it doesn’t feel right.

For a second, I can remember when I was just a kid getting ice cream with my mom. I would get excited for what the week would bring, what our next adventure was going to be. Now, I still go and get ice cream, but I’m not the kid I used to be. I don’t order cake batter ice cream, I choose Peanut Butter-Cup instead, my mom’s favorite. Instead of skipping out on ice cream, I decide to get some because I don’t take my ice cream for granted.

“Teddy’s – Famous For Ice Cream” by infomatique is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.