Thursday, April 24, 2008

Chic Chocolate in Cowboy Country

http://www.bigskyjournal.com/
We were featured in the Big Sky Journal Magazine’s spring issue, Check it out:
Today, I quizzed my ten year old son about the expression “Cowboy Up”. I presumed he would know since he hails (on his father’s side) from a long line of cattlemen and farmers rooted in the untamed central Montana. My son shook his head and laughed at me wondering why I wanted to know this. He thought it meant “the act” of putting on cowboy duds, such as spurs, chaps, cowboy hat, boots... “Are you making chocolate for cowboys, Mom?” Back when I decided to open a french chocolaterie smack in the middle of Big Sky country, some asked me if folks here would truly appreciate chic chocolate. (My optimistic answer: “Of course!”) Years ago, I remember glancing at an old black & white photo of my son’s great-great grandmother who had settled in the Judith Basin area. In the photo, she stood beautifully and self-possessed near a swaying wheat field. I was told that she never sacrificed elegance even though her rural surroundings sometimes complicated the task. This Montana woman polished her fine silverware, set her table properly, and took pride to serve her family gourmet meals (fresh from her expansive garden). The legacy that pioneer women like her passed on reflects in many Montana families today. Ask me who I think the classiest people in the world are and I’ll reply “Montanans, Mais Oui”. Elegance is a personal choice and it can exist anywhere, even Montana, where we are surrounded by dirt roads, galloping horses, high alpine peaks...and cowboys.
Photo taken By Mark Dixon

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