When birthday becomes dark day

Today is the birthday of Jesus Christ, and that reminds me of my last birthday on October 23.

The three wisemen in biblical setting who followed the star to look for Jesus, celebrated his birth with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh, when they had found him.

Hear me ye wisemen of our contemporary setting: on my birthday, follow my advice here; look for, and celebrate, me with gifts but never forget to add chocolate.

Beside appreciating God on this auspicious occasion, for almost two decades now, my birthday celebration was never complete without eating and sharing chocolate. 

And if it is chocolate, it must definitely be ‘Golden Tree Kingsbite’ milk chocolate (large size) produced by the Cocoa Processing Company in Ghana.

That brand of chocolate is the only companion besides God that holds my sanity intact, in good and/or bad mood.

Whenever I get an opportunity to travel abroad, I carry ‘Golden Tree Kingsbite’ milk chocolate along for two reasons: first, to eat it teasingly in the presence of foreigners, and, second, to share with them so they would behold, taste and feel great like I do.

Oftentimes, indulging in such promotional enterprise of the ‘Made-in-Ghana’ chocolate earns me bragging rights plus instant identity and fame.

The wild-goose chase

On my birthday, I woke up exactly at 2am, at the sound of the alarm set on my mobile phone.

That is my usual wake-up time, but on that special day, I jumped straight from bed without the habitual ‘bedmatics’ of rolling and stretching to banish sleep gently.

I jumped from bed and was unkind to sleep because I wanted to get everything on point and time on the most special day in my life – 23rd October.

I started singing in thanksgiving to God for His gift of life.

Emotions flared in my reflections, as I tried to reconcile how far God had brought me in life with how close my Maker was drawing me to death with each passing birthday.

On that Monday (birthday), I set off around 8:30am from Odumase in the Ga West Municipality on board an Uber car straight to the Cocobod offices in Accra Central.

That is where I usually buy my milk chocolate in box(es), from the wholesale shop on the right side of the building.

It’s a long distance from home to Cocobod; the vehicular traffic on that day was bad, and that increased the initial fare for the Uber service quite substantially.

But when it’s about satisfying my appetite for ‘Golden Tree Kingsbite’ milk chocolate, I lose my sense of financial prudence.

The calls and messages had already begun coming in with birthday wishes, some of them with additional gentle reminder: “I’m waiting for my chocolate”.

Because of the vehicular traffic, I disembarked on the way, about 150 metres away from the Cocobod building, to walk the rest of the distance.

But the human traffic did not give comfort either, especially on a Monday morning when head porters, traders and hawkers crisscrossed the road and pavement, as I manoeuvered slowly and endured a cocktailed offensive smell from body and goods moving around.

I persevered, got to the wholesale shop, stood for sometime to catch my breath and cool off in the air-conditioned room, before walking to the counter for my favourite brand of chocolate.

Then bam! I was hit with bad news: “We have run out of stock,” a shop steward at the counter told me in a tone that did not have regard for human sensibilities.

I thought I did not hear him well so I repeated my request; but he also repeated his response, firmly and with no sympathy at all.

It was after he had given the same response to two ladies who joined me later with the same mission – to buy milk chocolate – that I took this guy serious.

“Oh! Somebody is travelling with it tonight,” one of the ladies remarked in obvious disappoint.

The shop steward responded: “There’s a woman selling some outside; you can buy some from her”.

“But that will be too expensive; and I’m buying a large quantity,” the lady replied.

At this juncture, the shop steward was no longer interested in our interest; but I had to push my interest further: “When will you take stock?”

“Later today, in the afternoon,” the shop steward replied, this time, in a friendly tone.

“But we have ‘Dark Chocolate’ available,” he added.

Dark chocolate? I started walking out of the shop immediately I heard it.

With the denial of milk chocolate and the offer of dark chocolate, I knew my birthday was turning into a dark day. 

When I got out of the shop, I stood for about 15 minutes before leaving the premises.

My legs were very heavy; I was so dejected and totally confused, not knowing what had hit me that bad and how to recover from the disappointment.

Somehow, I vamoosed from the place, straight to the office.

The alternative

On my way to the office, I was fixed in deep thought, trying to figure out what could fit in as substitute.

It was such a difficult thing to do, given my addiction for ‘Golden Tree Kingsbite’ milk chocolate.

Suddenly, an idea came up, demanding attention rather forcefully.

It was chocolate! 

What brand of chocolate?

Chinese chocolate!

I dismissed it with the same force it emerged.

I love Chinese films and restaurants; but Chinese chocolate? Tofiakwa! I would rather settle for cassava chips.

I went straight to the office but my mind was never straight; it became a little stable when I received a birthday cake delivered by MTN earlier in the morning.

I remain grateful to MTN for the surprise birthday gift.

Still craving for my favourite milk chocolate, and relying on the assurance from the shop steward that the shop will take stock in the afternoon, I sent my pal Joe from the office to Cocobod to redeem my birthday from gloom.

Joe got to the shop just before 4pm but it was closed.

He was told the shop had closed much earlier, at 3pm; and that was their closing time.

When Joe called to deliver the bad news to me, I just lifted my eyes heavenward and exclaimed: “Lord, it is finished!”

Immediately, thereafter, my taste buds became very sensitive, craving for Chinese chocolate.

Questions arising

Many questions seized my thoughts, as the star that led me to Cocobod dimmed rather disappointingly:

How could a wholesale shop at the Cocobod head office ran out of stock for a high-demand product?

Is the Cocoa Processing Company having challenges with production of chocolate?

Are cocoa farmers in Ghana not producing enough to feed the processing company with raw material?

What sense does it make for Cocobod and Cocoa Processing Company to promote the patronage of Ghana’s brand of chocolate but cannot meet the minimum market demand?

Is the shortage of chocolate at Cocobod head office artificial in order to create a black market nearby?

What may be the justification for closing shop at 3pm which is quite earlier than the normal closing time of civil and public servants?

What time does the shop open to warrant its closing at 3pm to satisfy the average eight-hour working period per day for workers in general and public sector workers in particular?

I certainly need answers to these questions because they are very mind-boggling.

But will I ever get answers to these questions? I wonder!

That is why I come to you, cherished readers and friends, to help me with an answer to this one more question:

Where can I get Chinese chocolate to buy, for my taste buds have adjusted?

Writer’s Email: [email protected]  

The writer is the General Secretary of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA)