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HAVE A CUPPA 2008

Most of my life I have been a confirmed drinker of my favorite brand of cold cola. Sometimes when it wasn't at hand, I would drink something else, but it would always be something cold. There have been some rare times that I would have a warm drink, such as hot chocolate or hot tea.

It was suggested to me by a friend that this morning I have a cup of either hot chocolate or hot tea and that I take note of my experience with it. I humored him and said I would do so.

This morning I was doing some early wake up time in front of my computer before preparing for work, when I realized that, out of habit, I had my cold cola beside me and had forgotten about the hot tea I had intended to have. Because I said I would do so, I went down stairs and began brewing some Earl Grey tea while making my lunch for the day. It was soon ready and steaming, and I carried it upstairs with me to allow it to cool a little while I began getting ready for work. It suddenly occurred to me that I had dallied over long and needed to put myself in high gear.

I began rushing around chiding myself for letting time get away from me. Did I forget the mug of tea? No, I was acutely aware of it waiting for me and of my sense of responsibility for having said I would have it this morning.

I finally grabbed the cup, knowing that I didn't have time to savor it properly and took a quick sip thinking of my two sisters.

They love tea. The youngest is so taken with tea that she has collected a great variety of teas as well as beautiful tea cups that she finds in antique shops. She will occasionally host a tea party for me and our other sister. She will cover the table with a pretty cloth, put out her best china and set it off with a beautiful centerpiece. On the table will also be two lovely cozied teapots each with their own variety of steaming tea. We browse her teacup shelves and select the cup and saucer we would like to use for our tea. I usually drank the tea not from any personal interest, but because I enjoy my sisters and it made them happy to be having tea together. My cold cola would be waiting for me in the wings.

As I took that first hurried sip of my tea this morning, I promised I would do better by it another time. Oddly though, even in my rushed state, I paused with that first sip, then took another. This cup of Earl Gray was different than what I had tasted before. I was aware of a very nice, mellow and soothing warmth and flavor that I had barely noticed before. I sipped again, then felt regret that I must put the cup aside and couldn't sit and savor it longer.

As I was driving to work, I was thinking about the tea. I realized that in spite of my rush with it and my lack of total involvement, I had learned something about tea, myself, and my sisters. I realized that I now "get it". I have some insight about their love of tea that I was missing and the comfort and warmth that it gives them. Every cup of tea that they have gives them a gentle gift of comfort and warmth that eases their spirits. They may not even be thinking of it that way, only that it brings them pleasure. I wonder if this is, in a way, why my friend urged me to have something warm to drink this morning?

When your day has seemed stressed and full of nearly insurmountable challenges, think of Captain Jean Luc Picard of the USS Enterprise. Every week he dealt with overwhelming stresses such as strange worlds, a transporter that broke down at bad times, fighting with the Borg and such mundane daily aggravations. How did he manage to keep going? Simple. He took time out for some pleasant music and a hot cup of Earl Grey.

Learn more about this author, A. Jill Gaebel.
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