Love's Ice Cream Parlor
Love, in ice cream flavors
Each story on the board
Start with everybody's first taste
The sweet innocence of puppy love.
Let's call it Vanilla
Then you try new flavors
Chocolate for first dates
Strawberry for sweethearts
First kiss is Creamsicle Twist
Breaks ups are always Cookie Dough and tears
Prom is like Pistachio
With the slow dance sprinkles spread on top
Long distance is Coffee or Mocha Chip,
keeping you up at night.
Mint Cookie Crumble is for the cool guys
Death by Chocolate, for ladies way out of your league
Butter Pecan for too-good-for-you girls, leaving you slightly salty
Sherbet for the sure-bet girls, who your mom thinks are really great
In college you leave ice cream for Fro-Yo
You find your type, but the names change like toppings
Heather Heath Bars lead to Kimberly Coconut Flakes
Because hey, YOLO
Then you go away on holiday, and find new flavors
Piña Colada & Orange Pineapple, for summer romance
A flavor you just can't remember for the one that got away
You graduate and look for more sophisticated dates,
Organic, GMO-Free, fair trade.
But all too much effort, and in poor taste
You get married, and it's Rocky Road
A surprise in every bite
You get divorced and it's Panda Paws
Or Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Delight
You find love again, and this time it stays.
It's more learned now, solid in its ways
You realize what you wanted
Was Vanilla all these days.
This poem came about one night, after consoling a friend about a breakup. I told her, "Love is an ice cream stand. Every time you can try a new flavor. You might like it, you might not. Some flavors you only have if you feel a certain way. In the end, I think everybody wants vanilla. It's straightforward, honest and the right amount of sweet. It's a subtle flavor that isn't a fad. It's your first love, it's your soulmate, the person you can grow old with." I thought to myself, how would I describe love in ice cream? What flavors match up with a breakup, a marriage, a divorce or a first kiss?
What kind of flavor describes your relationship? Which ones would you add to Love's Ice Cream Parlor? Tweet using #FlavorsofLove, and spread the love.