当我年少的时候，我们家曾住在菲律宾。我们到达那里的时候，就看到在海边有椰子树、香蕉树，新鲜的空气和海洋的微风；这些美丽漂亮可爱的景色在欢迎我们。但是几个月以后，我开始怀念我在美国的一些美好事项。其中我最喜欢的就是巧克力布丁。我们都是自己从一盒含有所有调料的布丁粉，来做这种巧克力布丁的。我只要加上牛奶，把它和好了，然后放到冰箱里一段时间就可以了。做起来既快又简单，而最主要的是可口！

祖母从美国寄来一箱装满我们所喜爱的各种好东西。里面就有一盒我所喜欢的巧克力布丁粉。妈妈允许我来做这个巧克力布丁，这对我来说真是一件美差。我已经有好几个月没有吃到巧克力布丁了。 

我来到厨房，先拿出一只碗、打拌机和牛奶，然后就是这一盒巧克力布丁粉。我打开了盒子，把布丁粉慢慢地倒入牛奶里。扑通一声，从盒子里倒出一团黏在一起的一团布丁粉。啊！“我心爱的布丁粉怎么啦？”我心里想。我开始仔细看看这到底是一团什么东西，突然我发觉我的布丁粉里充满了很多很多小小的棕色食糖蚂蚁（见上图）。它们是在从美国运到菲律宾的途中钻进了我的巧克力布丁粉里，而且大嚼了我的布丁粉。它们太喜欢这样甜甜的布丁粉，结果它们都吃得撑死了！啊呀，我所喜爱的布丁啊，里面尽是食糖蚂蚁！我努力要把那些蚂蚁从布丁粉里检出来，但是实在太多了。怎么办？这是我喜欢的巧克力布丁，而且是千里迢迢寄来的仅有的一盒；谁知道要等到什么时候才会再收到另外一盒呢？于是我就做出了我所能作出的伟大决定 – 开动电动打拌机，把布丁粉、食糖蚂蚁和牛奶打拌在一起！

我没有告诉任何人关于这个巧克力布丁粉里的惊人发现。晚餐结束的时候，我把那盛着我做的巧克力布丁从厨房拿到餐桌上，一声不响地摆在大家的面前。我坐回我的椅子，脸上尴尬地傻笑着，一面拿起一勺给自己吃。大家也都高兴地吃着……直到……我姐姐开始拿起她的盘子到光线比较好的地方，奇怪地看着她盘子里的布丁。“我的布丁里有蚂蚁！”她叫了起来。我不敢回答，只是低头吃我的巧克力布丁。“我的布丁里全是蚂蚁！”她又说。这一下，我的爸爸妈妈也都开始检查他们的盘子。“我们的布丁里也都是蚂蚁！”他们大喊了。我妈妈不解地看着我，问我说，“你在做布丁的时候有没有看到里面尽是蚂蚁吗？”我老实地回答，“是的，里面有太多的蚂蚁，所以我没有办法只能把蚂蚁也一起打拌在里面了。”我又说，“那些富人不是专门把什么虫子之类的东西放在巧克力里吃的吗？让我们也把这个作为美食家的布丁吧。”

于是我们都吃了，而且巧克力蚂蚁布丁其味无穷！

讨论问题：

1.        如果在你最最喜爱的食物中有些蚂蚁，你是不是还会吃？

2.        你觉得当这个家庭发现布丁里有蚂蚁的时候，他们会有什么样的反应？

3.        你最喜爱的甜点是什么？

When I was a boy my family lived in the Philippines. Coconut trees, bananas by the bunch, fresh fish, and ocean breezes welcomed us when we entered the country. It was all very beautiful and lovely. However, after a few months had passed I began to miss some of my favorite things from the United States. One of those favorite things was chocolate pudding. A box of pudding contains all the ingredients in a powder. All I have to do is add milk, mix it well, and place in the refrigerator. It is quick, easy, and very delicious!

My grandmother sent us a box filled with all the goodies we liked from the States. Inside was a box of my favorite chocolate pudding. My mother gave me permission to prepare the sweet dessert. This would be a real treat. It had been months since I had enjoyed chocolate pudding. 

I entered the kitchen and set out a bowl, the mixer, and milk. Now for the box with the powdery mix. I opened it and turned it so the powder would slowly fall into the milk. Plop! Out of the box fell a ball of powder now stuck together in one sticky blob. Ahhhh! “What has happened to my chocolate pudding?” I thought to myself. As I began to study the blob I realized that the powder was full of very tiny sugar ants. They had entered the package while it was travelling from the States to the Philippines and feasted upon my pudding mix. They enjoyed themselves so much

that they ate themselves to death! Here was my pudding filled with hundreds of little ants! I tried to pick them out and separate them from the mix, but there were too many. What was I to do? I loved chocolate pudding and this was the only box for thousands of miles; who knows when I would receive another box? I made the only decision that could be made. I turned on the electric mixer and mixed the pudding with ants and all!

I did not tell anyone about the chocolate surprise. After dinner I brought the dishes of pudding from the kitchen to the table and quietly placed them in front of each family member. I sat down in my chair, and with a very faint grin on my face, I picked up my spoon and began to eat. Everyone was eating and enjoying it….until…my sister began to hold her dish up towards the light. She was looking at her dish very curiously. “There’s an ant in my pudding,” she said. I did not respond and continued to eat. “There are ants all in my pudding!” she cried. Now my father and mother began to examine their dishes. “There are ants in my pudding, as well!” they exclaimed. My mother looked at me in confusion. “Did you not see all these ants in the pudding before you prepared the pudding?” she asked. “Yes,” I replied, “but there were too many so I had no choice but to mix them into the pudding.” “Besides,” I continued, “rich people eat all kinds of chocolate covered bugs and insects. Please, just consider it to be gourmet pudding.”

So we did and the chocolate covered ants were delicious!

Discussion Questions:

1. Would you eat ants if they were in the very last of your favorite dessert?

2. How do you think his family felt when they discovered ants in their pudding?

3. What is one of your favorite sweets?