There comes a time in every person’s life where they must shed the shackles of who they used to be and become someone new. And for Mom, the day has finally come: Mom just tried Stroopwafel while on a flight to Newport, Rhode Island.

You go, Mom! 

As the United Airlines flight attendant approached Mom in her seat in economy row 38, Mom assumed she’d get pretzels and a Diet Coke, just as she ordered the last time she flew on her 2023 trip to Santa Barbara for her niece’s wedding. However, at the urging of her seatmate—her adventurous friend Patricia, who’s divorced and into wild stuff like online dating—Mom instead ordered “Stroopwafel,” a foreign-sounding snack that Mom was at the time entirely unfamiliar with. After learning from Patricia that the snack was German (which, unfortunately, was incorrect, it’s Dutch) Mom gave the Stroopwafel a small, delicate bite and her eyes immediately rolled back into her head with near-orgasmic delight.

“Oh my Goooood,” Mom crooned, savoring the cinnamon-caramel taste. “Can you even find these things in the States?” Patricia responded, once again incorrectly, “Yes, but it’s really hard.” As Mom nibbled the rest of her way through the relatively common cookie, it became clear she had crossed some sort of threshold and come out the other side a totally different person—one with an appetite for novelty, exploration, and adventure.

There’s no telling what other new things Mom might try on the rest of her Rhode Island trip: Aperol spritzes, romantasy novels, possibly even hazy IPAs? All we know is that the world is Mom’s oyster, and she’s ready to go get what’s hers. You got this, Mom! Maybe this is the weekend you’ll even ride in an Uber for the first time!