Candy as Memory Maker

When people first hear about my blog, they always ask, "Why candy?"
The easy answer is, because I love it!
The more accurate answer is, because candy touches people's lives in ways that we don't even think about.
Tonight I went to a wake for Mrs. O. That's what everyone called her-- "Mrs. O." She was the type of person who you'd just knock on her door any given time and drop in. Her kids grew up with my brother and sisters (I came along a little later), and it was one big happy neighborhood. As I was thinking about Mrs. O on the drive home, I realized that the first thing that pops into my head when I hear her name is a specific moment in time-- Halloween, standing on her front steps (the only time you ever used the front door!), ringing the doorbell. I'd just come from my grandparents' house across the street where I got a giant candy bar (the huge ones you buy at the grocery store), and now Mrs. O has come to the door and is saying, "It's Patti! Hold on. I've got something special for you!" It was a little bag packed full of goodies, just for me!
Freeze! That's the moment-- the image-- that pops into my mind first. Of course, there are many other memories, but that's the defining one.
This made me think about our connections of candy with people. When I think about the people who are no longer here, I can associate a candy with them, just as Kris shared with us in her guest post. Here are some of my memories:

Pop Pop: black licorice, hard candies in a tin, and the time he pilfered a candy out of the Brach's Pick-a-Mix ("just sampling")
Little Grandma: Wrigley's gum
Big Grandma: Crystal mints and Nips
Uncle Henry: a drawer full of candy bars
Judy: Snirkles and late-night candy raids

Give it some thought, dear Yumsters. What candy memories do you have? I bet you'll be surprised.