Tisane et Chocolat

There was once a young woman who wished for a child. She told this to her faery godmother who gave her a box of tisanes.

"My dear, take these tisanes and you are sure to have a child." the faery godmother told her.

Sure enough, after drinking the tisanes, the young woman became pregnant and gave birth to a little girl. The little girl was quick and lively, her eyes as green as the leaves of camomile, her fine hair as blonde as barley, her skin as pale as lime blossoms. As she had come from her mother drinking tisanes, she was called Tisane.

Little Tisane grew slowly and patiently, but her mama noticed that she sighed and felt lonely. The young woman consulted her faery godmother again who gave her a tin of powdered chocolate.

"My dear," she said, "Drink this chocolate and see what will happen."

The young woman was partial to chocolate and drank it through the winter as her little Tisane slept and gurgled and generally made her mother's life a pleasure. She was such a well-behaved and considerate baby. As the winter turned to spring, the young woman became pregnant and soon gave birth to yet another little girl. This little girl was also quite lively and quick and very sweet. She had eyes like chocolate buttons, her fine hair was dark like the finest chocolate and her skin was pale like the blossoms of the Cocoa plant. As she had come into the world through chocolate, her mother - who was French (did I not mention that? How remiss of me) named her Chocolat.

The two little girls grew up together and became very fond of each other. They were inseparable all the way through school. Oh they were wooed by boys and Tisane always made her schoolmates feel better, soothing their hurts and refreshing them with her wit. Chocolat on the other hand was wooed for her sweet nature and her liveliness.

It happened that their mother became very ill so Tisane stayed at home to look after her and soothed her and healed her. Instantly she decided to become a doctor. Chocolat had also helped to look after her mother and sweetened her environment and cheered her mother up by singing to her. Instantly she decided to become a singer.

The two young women passed their baccalaureat and worked hard to get into university. But life is not something that can be so precisely planned for. One plans one thing and hopes it will work. Often it does not, but becomes something else along the way. Just so, the two young women never got to university. With names like theirs it will not surprise you to learn that they began to make chocolates and tisanes and to sell them. First among their neighbours and friends, then throughout Paris. Before long they had shops in London and New York. Then online and after a very short while they found they were rich.

Tisane put her wealth to healing the hurts of others and soothing them. Chocolat put her wealth into sweetening people's lives and cheering them up. Not long after they fell in love and were wed. Tisane married a young Englishman called Basil. Chocolat married a beautiful young woman called Orangette. As everyone knows, Chocolat and Orange are perfect together and Tisanes are lovely when had with pasta au Basil.

The faery godmother gave them her blessing before flying off to Cannes for the film festival. They have been happy ever since. I should know, Basil often tells me.