Definitely Not Sugar-Coating It

(We are at the dinner table. My mother makes an agreement with my younger brother that if he eats three green beans he can have a donut, as my brother HATES almost all fruits and vegetables. He has the green beans on his fork but doesn’t want to eat them.)

Brother: “I don’t want to eat them!”

Mom: “Eat them.”

Brother: “But I don’t wanna!”

(My mom, fed up as this has been going on for about 10 minutes, finally cracks.)

Mom: “Listen [Brother], if you don’t start eating healthier especially at this age you will develop type two diabetes and have to test your blood sugar levels three to five times a day by poking yourself with a needle and testing the blood. Also you will have to go on a special diet and maybe have to take shots before and after meals to keep your blood sugar levels down, AND! If you keep eating like this you will go into a diabetic arrest and possibly DIE!”

(Not half a second after she said that my brother shoved the green beans into his mouth without a word.)