There’s something about being outside sipping your tea in a breeze. The breeze rushes by and somehow makes the tea taste even more refreshing and warm. I’ve often wondered if other people enjoy the same, but it’s not exactly a question that promotes camaraderie – it would probably promote more eye rolling than anything. Drinking tea is relaxing, it makes you stop and sit for an extra minute. Even if it’s in a “to-go” cup, you still have to stand still for a few seconds in order to take a sip.

Even the process of making a cup of tea can be a comforting routine. Filling up the teakettle, finding just the right mug. A lot of tea is drank out of tea cups but I prefer mine in a mug. My daughter-in-law’s keen eye pegged me for my mug choices. She noticed how I hesitate before I pass out mugs to others in the family, thinking about which one best represents the tea drinker or the mood of the day. I was surprised that she noticed, but one day as she was watching me she commented – You are thinking about which mug to give out to each person, aren’t you?

I also think a lot about which mug I would like each time I have a cup of tea. Maybe I think too much. I try to have a mug that has been given to me by each one of my kids most often. I think about each one of them while I’m choosing the mug and then I say a quick prayer for them as I prepare my cup of tea. It’s one of the reasons I have so much trouble letting go of mugs that are cracked or chipped because each mug usually reminds of a certain time or person, and I can’t always part with it. And I am a borderline hoarder at heart!

My grandmother was the one who introduced me to tea. And actually it’s a little funny that I have never had a cup of tea from one of her tea cups. My sister has them in her china cabinet and I’ve never really considered that I’ve never used them. When my grandmother made me tea, she would pour lots of milk in it, with very little tea. It felt like a very grown-up thing to be doing, sitting at the table chatting and having a cup of tea. Wonderful memories.