Stephen Bregande cannot recall the last time he tasted a melon.
“I really do want to try them. They smell good, but I know I can’t eat them, so I haven’t tried one in awhile,” Bregande, junior, said. “I’m not quite sure how it would affect me now if I actually ate one.”
Bregande is allergic to all types of melons. He has known about the allergy since he was a baby when his parents tried feeding him cantaloupe and honeydew.
“I would break out in a bad rash and they just didn’t really agree with me,” Bregande said.
Bregande believes his allergy has gotten worse as he has gotten older. He now notices he is extremely sensitive to even the smell of melons.
“I worked at the YMCA summer camp this year, and one of the activities had the kids cover a watermelon in oil and then try to pass it down a line, and one kid dropped his and when it broke even just the smell of it made my throat start to burn and swell up,” Bregande said.
Bregande is well aware of the consequences of eating melons, yet he cannot seem to shake the urge to try a piece of the forbidden fruit.
“I guess there’s always that dark temptation inside me telling me to try a melon,” Bregande said.
