Pass the Sugar, Please

The other evening we had the opportunity to have dinner with friends, hosted by a Japanese family. After a first-rate dinner of pork cutlets and gyoza, a light pudding was served for dessert. As I ate my pudding I couldn't help savoring the subtle hint of sweetness coming from the cream used to make the pudding. I thought to myself how well it was that I could enjoy a pudding that had such subtle flavors, especially for an American palate. I was just about to congratulate myself on finally adjusting to the non-sweet and often bland nature of Japanese cooking when the daughter of the family suddenly pushed her pudding away in disgust exclaiming, "I can't eat this! It's too sweet!" I was shocked and infinitely grateful that I'd kept my mouth shut. Her mother apologized to her daughter, saying, "I'm sorry, but because I knew foreigners were coming to dinner, I added more sugar than usual." I couldn't believe it. I ate the rest of my pudding slowly, trying with all my might to think it was too sweet. Needless to say, I failed miserably and spent the rest of the evening quietly pondering my inability to recognize sweetness when it was presented in such large quantities. What other flavors might I be no longer capable of tasting due to my years of overindulgence in Western society? Just some food for thought . . .