Green Foods I Could Eat All Day: Past and Present

Flatulence and broken teeth

I like cucumbers and lettuce but wouldn’t eat them all day. Too much roughage can negatively affect a person of a certain age, you know.

Similarly, I love peas, but the same issue could arise from eating them all day.

I do have a favorite “Mom’s dish.” I could absolutely eat her split pea soup all day. It might actually be OK that Mom is gone. Enough flatulence to clear a stadium crowd could be a side effect.

I have a green guilty pleasure that I would have definitely eaten all day. I could not get enough of those jellied spearmint leaves. It’s my Dad’s fault. I was the only offspring who loved them as much as he did. We’d go through a half-pound bag in three days. Do you know how many spearmint leaves there are in a half-pound? A lot.

But, alas, the universe blocked our indulgence.

We both became diabetic. We were limited to two each and would play a guessing game: How many leaves does it take to raise one’s glucose level too high?

There were other problems as well. Dad had terrible teeth but felt getting dentures would be a waste of time and money. Let’s say loose teeth and sticky spearmint leaves are not a good combination. On the upside, he had fewer teeth to brush.

My problem also started when I was forced to get what I call: “Store-bought teeth.” While this allows one to sing while brushing one’s teeth, eating spearmint leaves can cause upper, lower, or both to tumble into one’s hands.

I wish Mom were still here. Split pea soup would indeed taste great right now.