Roberta Writes – d’Verse, Who has a sweet tooth, Esther Chilton’s writing challenge, and Thursday Doors – Bruxelles chocolate tour #poetry #photography

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Lillian’s d’Verse prompt is to create a poem using at least one sweet/chocolate from a provided list. You can read the details of the prompt here: https://dversepoets.com/2025/07/22/who-has-a-sweet-tooth/

Throw out other chocolate

Bruxelles, Belgium

Chocolate capital of the world

A status assigned in 1912 when

Swiss apothecary, Jean Neuhaus Jr,

Together with his son, Jean II

Created the first chocolate filled pralines

An amazing taste explosion

That won the hearts of Belgians

Especially when packaged

In the exclusive ballotin

Designed by Jean’s wife

The innovative Louise Agostini

Soon the greater world

Discovered Belgian pralines

Not an ordinary confectionary

Like Snickers, Kit Kat, or Twix

Nor a praliné filling, comprising

Of ground caramelised nuts

Not the same thing at all

But a specific composition

Consisting of a chocolate casing

Made using 35% pure cocoa

With a delicious soft filling

That includes nuts, marzipan, coffee,

Salted caramel, liquors, cherry,

or a yummy chocolate blend

So put down the Chuckles,

Big Hunk Bars, and Three Musketeers,

Throw out the Bit-O-Honey, Skittles,

Sweetarts, and their confectionary like

And indulge yourself with delicacies

From Côte d’Or, Leonidas

Pierre Marcolini, or Neuhaus

Micro poem

decadently rich

smooth satin consistency

destroyer of waists

Thursday Doors

While in Bruxelles, we went on a chocolate tour and this is where I learned about a few of the chocolatiers and distributors of Belgian chocolate. These are a few of my photographs.

Picture caption: Les Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert Galerie (this is the covered mall in Bruxelles)

The chocolate tour started at the Les Galeries Royales, a covered mall in Bruxelles. It is a very upmarket mall that was originally for the royals and their friends only.

Picture caption: Another photograph of the undercover mall. It is very beautiful. You can see the many doors along the corridor
Picture caption: Front window of Leonidas, the first chocolate shop we visited
Picture caption: Front window of Neuhaus which calls itself the inventors (of pralines)
Picture caption: This is a doors challenge, so here is the door into Neuhaus
Picture caption: A chocolate bust of Jean Neuhaus Jnr and an example of Neuhaus chocolates
Picture caption: Window of Mary’s, a chocolatier started by a woman which makes it unusual as it was at a time when women did not own businesses
Picture caption: TC going through the door of BS40. This chocolatier is different as it is owned by a Japanese couple and has a distinctly Japanese flavour to its products
Picture caption: This is the door to the Atelier Sainte Catherine. This is the only one of the chocolatiers we visited that makes its chocolate on the premises in a factory at the back. I liked that aspect.

Esther Chilton’s writing challenge

This haibun is serving double duty for last week’s prompt of inspiration and this week’s prompt of faith. You can join in here: https://estherchilton.co.uk/2025/07/23/writing-prompts-75/

Private Library

By the time I was eleven years old, I had accumulated a large personal collection of books, ranging from children’s picture books to adult novels.  Some of these books were birthday and Christmas gifts accumulated over my short life, others had been purchased at school and church fund raising fetes. I had quickly learned that book stalls at fetes were a fantastic place for me to acquire any book I wanted, regardless of suitability for a young girl. Volunteers barely glanced at my piles of books as they mechanically removed the price tags and totted up the total due. I always had a few bags on hand to stuff them into as quickly as possible. I managed to acquire a few gems like Lace, Princess Daisy, and various Dean R Koontz and Stephen King novels. I remember one book about a ship lost in the Bermuda Triangle that gave me nightmares for weeks.

Friends and my three younger sisters, regularly asked to borrow my books. This seemed like a reasonable request, but I needed to keep track of who borrowed which book. Inspiration hit and I decided to create my own library. I spent several weeks making card sleeves and cards for every book I owned. At that time, it was a few hundred as opposed to the few (three) thousand I now own in a physical form.

The day came when my library was ready, and I invited friends over to borrow books. They filled their names and the date on the beautiful blank cards and took my books away.  Sadly, many came back damaged by bending or water stains and some never came back at all. This poor treatment of my most treasured possessions sadly shook my faith in humanity and I closed my library. I have never again loaned out a book that I wanted to keep. If I lend anyone a book it is technically a gift as I don’t want the post reading damaged goods returned to me. This was a life lesson I have never forgotten.

Water stained

Broken and battered

Veterans

Of neglect

And blatant indifference

Life lesson soon learned

Picture caption: This is my original copy of Tom Sawyer
Picture caption: This book, Tom Sawyer, still has the sleeve and card I made for my library inside it
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Published by robertawrites235681907

I am a writer of young adult fiction and poetry

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93 thoughts on “Roberta Writes – d’Verse, Who has a sweet tooth, Esther Chilton’s writing challenge, and Thursday Doors – Bruxelles chocolate tour #poetry #photography”

  2. Whenever my Belgian neighbour goes home for a visit, she brings me back some Leonidas chocolate. They are so good. I think it’s so cool that you created a library. It is disappointing that not everyone has the same high regard for books as we do. I remember every person who never returned a book I lent them!

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  3. Robbie, your post runs the gamut of emotions: tales of delectable Belgian chocolate and of detestable book handling. Theoretically, your personal lending library was a great childhood idea.

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  4. The only chocolate tour I’ve ever done was the Ethel M. Chocolate Factory in Las Vegas (which has an adjoining cactus garden, or at least it did; I haven’t been there in a long time).

    I remember collecting books as a kid too, though in later years I donated most of them away when I stopped looking at them. Looking back, I feel it was right as they would probably do better out there for others than sitting on my shelf.

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  5. I would love that chocolate tour! I love good chocolate. The candies on Lillian’s list don’t tempt me at all.

    I can imagine your frustration that your friends didn’t care for books the way you do. I have always lived in houses filled with books, though I’m a big fan of public libraries, too. Once my mom’s cousin borrowed a cookbook with history from me. She accidentally damaged it in some small way and insisted on buying me a new copy.

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  7. Loved your photographs as as always Robbie, thank you for sharing!
    That chocolate bust looks amazing.🤗
    What a wonderful idea to start a library, but so sad that some did not value your kindness or treat the books with respect 🙄

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      1. Hi Robbie
        You know when I lived in rented accommadation I was always very careful about the furnishings etc, because these things were not mine.
        I guess it is how we are raised.
        Thanks again for your lovely post.

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  9. You made my mouth water with your chocolate poem. Chocolate is my favourite food.

    I loved your doors. Beautiful.

    How wonderful that you had your own library but how sad a lot of books came back uncared for. I don’t blame you for closing your library. Books are precious items and should be treated as such.

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    1. Hi Esther, I’m glad you liked the chocolate poem and doors. I was happy to get this prompt as I had started a poem along these lines and it helped me crystallise the idea. I have always cared for all my belongings because they were hard to come by when I was young.

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  10. Whereas the poem about the luxurious chocolates of Belgium made me happy I do not live closer was wonderful- I loved the story recanting your youth as an aspiring librarian. What a fascination it must have been to collect them all- and my heart hurt when your precious books were returned in less than original condition. I always enjoy the time I spend here, Roberta.

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  12. Fun post Robbie. I’m sorry about your books and had a similar experience with my brother not treating my toy car collection well. The chocolate tour sounds fun too and I bet the chocolate was delicious. We toured the Hershey plant when I was young and it was quite fun for us kids. 😊

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  13. There’s so much to like in this post, Robbie. I love the line: “destroyer of waists.” Indeed, chocolate can do that.

    The story of your library reminded me of why I never lend tools. I will take tools to someone’s house and help them do a job, but I won’t lend them my tools. I had several returned damaged and some not returned at all. I don’t blame you for not lending books.

    I loved the photos. I’m not sure I could get through that mall with my wallet intact.

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  17. I adore this post from beginning to end. I can just see you with your little library. I would have closed it, too. That reminds me, I need to go to the Tulare County Library and get a new card.

    The chocolates had my mouth watering from the very first word in the title. Yum. I enjoyed going on your tour with you! 🙂

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  19. It’s almost lunch time here and all I can think of i chocolate! Here in the US it’s gotten very expensive. I too have a huge collection of books and you’re right – a loan is a gift.

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  21. It is too bad that people can’t be careful with the things they borrow. I am sorry your library entrepreneurship did not work out well. It was a delicious chocolate poem. Close to our house we have Neuhaus restaurant. They sell Neuhaus chocolate, and they serve South African dishes as well as salads, hamburgers, and pasta dishes. The owner is from South Africa. We go there a lot because of the variety of the food, and to buy chocolate.

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    1. Hi Thomas, I love to hear about South Africans doing well abroad. The BEE and transformation policies here have made it very hard for ordinary white people to find work. Frankly, in our shrinking economy, it is impossible. We stay because we have secure jobs and family here and my beloved bushveld. I can’t imagine life without animals and the bush veld.

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          1. It certainly is not a governments job to dictate who companies and organizations can hire. I know the bush veld is very important to you, but that is not a good development.

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  22. Robbie, I truly admire the way you weave so many creative threads into one post—your travels, the writing prompts, and your own reflections come together so beautifully. Your mind is a marvel! I always look forward to what you’ll share next, and today’s post was a joy to read. You remind us that creativity doesn’t live in one lane—it thrives where paths intersect.

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    1. Hi Patricia, I was amazed by the chocolate bust. They also had large chocolate Smurfs. Such fun. I am delighted you are enjoying And the Grave Awaits. I saw you were up for author of the month on Spillwords so I voted for you.

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  30. Love it all Robbie: the Belgium chocolates, the Belgium photos, the writing, your library.. This is a fabulous post.

    I see you have been enterprising all of your life.

    Now, I’m thinking of some of the books I never got back. SIGH!

    Hugs!

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      1. I agree!
        There’s an old saying – “Neither a borrower nor a lender be!”
        It’s meant for money, but applies to much more.
        🌟💖

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  31. The chocolate caught my eye, Robbie, so I loved your poem, but your micro poem made me laugh. Too much of a good thing isn’t so good. 🙂 See’s Candy is my favorite here, started by Charles See, his wife Florence, and his mother Mary in Los Angeles in 1921. Anything other than See’s chocolate isn’t as good. So my husband knows what to get me. 🙂 I love your haibun too, but it’s sad that others didn’t have the same consideration about borrowing your books. I don’t lend books out either, except to a friend who has the same consideration. 💕

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    1. Chocolate is a real hook, Lauren. I think I’m the only person in the world who doesn’t eat chocolate. I’m pleased to learn your favourite brand. I don’t lend books but I sometimes give one to someone and get a new one 😉

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