Celiacs, Silly Yaks, Silly Acts

Last Sunday, a girl in my apartment complex knocked on my door and wanted to borrow muffin tins. I was hesitant to let her, because I knew she would contaminate my pans with wheat flour.

I'm a celiac. I have celiac disease. I don't eat wheat or malt or barley or rye. It makes me sick.

Since it was Sunday though, and I wanted to make a new friend, I let her borrow my muffin tins.

I planned on scrubbing them with soapy water after she returned them.

When she came back two hours later, she had a muffin in her hands.

I thanked her for the muffin, knowing that I would give the muffin to my roommate later. I'm a celiac. I don't eat muffins with wheat flour.

As she was leaving, she mentioned that they were flourless chocolate muffins.

My eyes widened. "Flourless?"

She smiled, and could see right through me.

"You're a celiac," she knew it before I could even nod my head. "My boyfriend's sister has celiac disease too. We always cook gluten-free so that she can eat with us."

So I ate her muffin. Her flourless chocolate raspberry muffin. It was glorious. And I made a new friend.

These kinds of things happen to me weekly. I run into someone whose mom has celiac disease or mission companion had celiac disease. When talking about celiac disease, it's crucial to remember that this is not a sad or debilitating disease.

Celiac disease brings people together. We talk about food and recipes and new products that are coming out. We tell stories about people who feel so much better because they are living gluten-free. This is a disease about togetherness. We learn the most about living gluten-free from each other. We need each other.

The BYU Celiac Club is starting its support group Fall 2010. We will have professional speakers, discussion groups, potlucks, recipe exchanges, and every other lovely thing you can imagine every third Thursday night of the month. To officially join, go to clubs.byu.edu and find Celiac Club. The BYUSA website will say that we're "Restricted" or "Not Recognized," but that's only because our charter is being revamped. Celiac Club will be official in a few weeks, and in a few months, all of the gluten-free silly acts will begin. We'll keep you posted.

Are you interested in being an officer for the club? Email us. byuceliaclub@gmail.com.