Little America

Diet Coke has always been a part of my life. Because it's my mother's choice soft drink, my family always had a case of the beverage in the fridge or out in the garage. I, of course, was not allowed to drink it until my late teens.

But I fell in love with Diet Coke at age five, when we moved from Utah County to a small town in Northern Utah. At the time, I had an energetic chocolate Labrador, named Chocolate and a goldfish, named Goldie. Even as a four-year-old, I was a very practical child when it came to naming my pets.

While, Chocolate would be brought up to our house at a later date, Goldie would travel in her small tank on the passenger seat floor of our sparkly dark purple Plymouth Neon.

When it was time to travel towards Tremonton, Utah, I said goodbye to Goldie, my Mom and little brother as I hopped into the U-Haul with my dad.

Unfortunately, there was construction on I-15--which meant that a drive that normally took two hours, ended up being closer to four. For my dad and I, the drive was long and uneventful.

My mom did not have the same experience.

As she was driving through heavy construction, a construction pulled out in front of her abruptly. She hit the brakes and avoided the collision, keeping herself and my baby brother out of an accident. Goldie wasn't as fortunate.

The goldfish and her habitat spilled all over the passenger floor of the Neon. My mom had several miles to go before reaching our new home and could clean up the mess. She figured the goldfish would die.

As Goldie flopped around, my mom felt bad for the fish and eventually grabbed the scaly creature and threw it in the half-full Diet Coke that sat in the cup holder.

Before I arrived with my dad, my mom had cleaned up the mess and had the fish tank back in order with Goldie--who was miraculously still alive--swimming inside. Even after her hour swim in Diet Coke, Goldie did not die until a year later.

Although I didn't get to, nor want, to drink Diet Coke until my late teens, I had an appreciation for the beverage that saved my goldfish.

Now in Germany, it had been almost a month since drinking the soda. I missed it terribly! Cola Light was and still is not the same.

But I hoped that I could probably find the beverage on the American base in Wiesbaden, when I went to go see Star Wars with Elder and Sister Gilbert. (One of two senior missionary couples in my department. I basically consider both couples as my "Germany Grandparents.")

Prior to meeting the couple in the office, I happily tucked $40.00 in my coat pocket, for the movies and hopefully a trip to the Commissary afterwards.

Once we arrived to the movies and ordered our snacks, Elder Galbraith insisted that he would cover the cost. As I approached the soda fountain with my paper cup, I saw both Diet Coke and an ice dispenser--two of my most missed American items.

Tears of joy pooled in the corner of my eyes as I smiled in excitement as I said, "I've missed Diet Coke so much since coming to Germany!"

Elder Galbraith laughed and said that we could pick me up a case at the Commissary after the movie, which made me love him even more as one of my Public Affairs Department grandpas.

After finding our seats and standing for the National Anthem in what can be described as a large high school theater, the movie began. As the traditional theme song began, I missed my family even more than I already did. I couldn't help but think about going with my dad on opening night nor about how my little sister designated me as the "Best Sister EVER," after convincing my parents to let me take her to the movie.

Elder Galbraith and I ate a large popcorn and black licorice during the movie. Once the theater lights lifted I felt like a popcorn kernel on the verge of exploding. Somehow, I lifted myself from my seat, made it to the car, then back out to go shopping at the Commissary.

I fell in love with the store filled with American food quickly. The layout reminded me of Smith's and there was so many options for everything! I followed my Germany grandparents as they gathered a few of their favorite items.

They were kind enough to let me pick out some extra items beyond the 24-count case of Diet Coke. My foods of choice were Skippy Extra-Crunchy Peanut butter, Ritz, Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, Brookside Chocolate Covered Acai Berry Candies and a loaf of white bread.

"Let's go to the Food Court for dinner after we get everything," Elder Galbraith suggested as we headed to the car with the groceries.

My heart leapt for joy at the prospect of American fast food, but my brain questioned if it was physically possible to fit more food in my already bulging stomach.

"Challenge accepted," I thought, reasoning that I wouldn't have certain types of fast food available to me until I got back to the States.

As the sliding doors of the Food Court opened and surveyed the greasy food options before me, I felt even more at home than I already did. Before selecting the fast food chain store I wanted to eat from, I weighed my options carefully. Making the right food choice was imperative, especially since I would probably not get another chance to get on base before going home.

I decided to order from Popeye’s. What's more American than fried chicken, mac & cheese and a buttered biscuit?

My meal was amazing! After finishing, I slouched in the heavy-duty plastic chair in a state of food comatose, my stomach bulging as I had swallowed a bowling ball. At this point I knew that the Galbraith's were definitely my Germany grandparents.

They entertained me, fed me until I felt like I was going to explode and sent me home with more food than I needed.