Chocolate For Field Trips.

by chris
(troy, ny)

I attended Catholic Central High School, a small private school in Troy, NY. Every year, we would participate in various fundraisers to raise money to pay for our annual field trips. While it was a private school, not all of us were filthy rich, so the cost of these trips were subsidized by the money we raised. Therefore, the more you sold, the less you had to pay. Seemed like a logical enough reason, so I had no problem going out and selling my heart out.

While there were a few other fundraisers we typically were involved in (magazine subscriptions, wrapping paper), the easiest to make money on, by far, was the World's Finest Chocolate drive. Everyone in the area knew how great the chocolate tasted. Besides, who doesn't like chocolate, right? At a dollar a piece, it was a breeze to unload a few boxes by walking around the neighborhood (which I would NOT recommend without an adult), giving a box to each parent to bring into the office, and of course cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents at all the family functions.

I will never forget that first year, when I was a naive freshman. The school held this big rally to kick off the chocolate drive, and as an incentive the more boxes you sold, the bigger the bonus prize you could pick from the catalog of awe. I figured that if I ate a few boxes' worth of candy bars, I wouldn't have to sell as many, and I would get one of those "gotta have it" toys from the catalog we all talked about at the lunch table.

The school thought it was great when I told them I was "finished" with a box, and asked for a second. Low and behold, two weeks and three boxes later, I was sick of chocolate.

When the school asked for the money that had to be turned in at the end of the month, my stomach dropped. My mom had to write a check for three boxes of candy bars, to which she still never lets me forget to this day. I am not sure which hurt worse, my stomach or the feeling of guilt I had for the rest of that year.