How many years did I drink bad coffee, then good coffee, until I finally learned about the beauty of a great cup of tea?

When I was little, my grandmother would make me “coffee” to drink while we watched Lassie. It was probably 80 percent milk with a few drops of coffee, and a lot of sugar. But when drunk out of a pewter cup while watching my favorite show with one of my favorite people, it was divine.

Years later in my last semester of high school, I started to drink instant “international” coffees. This product probably helped give America a reputation for internationally bad taste in food and drink. This habit lasted until I found organic shade-grown coffee.

Time to switch it up

When I became pregnant, I had to curtail my six to eight cups of coffee a day. That habit would not suffice for establishing fetal health. I am proud to say I quit cold turkey. It did not help that all my classes were located above a cafeteria from which the scent of percolating coffee was omnipresent. The smell permeated my entire day whenever I had to be in that building. Torture.

At some point, I realized that I needed to replace this beverage with something else I could enjoy. Remembering my mom’s stash of Celestial Seasonings samplers in her kitchen at home, I put them on the grocery list. Hmmm. Caffeine-free for the most part, and tasty. With honey, tea seemed to be a good substitute.

I needed to change the way I’d learned to make tea: heating a mug-full of water on HIGH in the microwave for one minute, teabag inserted, adding honey after removing. Microwaves seemed vaguely dangerous to me early in my pregnancy. We had a microwave but using it did not appeal to me.

Six to nine months later we moved to a house west of the Boulevard in Richmond. It was complete with my own microwave-free kitchen. I began to master the art of tea.

Great tea tastes like home

First, buy or grow an abundance of excellent leaves. Dry or buy organic loose-leaf  tea. Or purchase a tea made with organic and fair-trade ingredients. Best yet, tend a small assembly of potted or planted herbs good for drinking.

Some of our favorite teas were Yogi Tea‘s Cocoa Spice, or Vanilla Hazelnut, or Celestial Seasoning’s English Breakfast Tea. For growing tea at home, I prefer chocolate mint, anise hyssop, peppermint, or lemon grass.

Preparation

Heat one cup of water for every tea bag or tea spoonful of dried herb that you plan to use. Add an extra spoonful or two for the pot, if you are brewing a pot’s worth.

Before putting he lid on, breathe in deeply the aroma of the freshly steaming herbs, give thanks and bless the tea so that it will nourish you and those around you.

If you do individual tea cups, pour the water over the herbs and top each cup with a small saucer to all the taste to fully permeate the entire cup. Wait three minutes, adding 1-2 teaspoons of honey  if so desired, but try the tea first to see if it’s really necessary. Good herbs usually negate the need for anything beyond a grateful and receptive heart.

Stir with a teaspoon clockwise twelve times, then counter-clockwise just three to oxygenate and infuse the tea with a loving vibe; whether the cup is for a friend, or for yourself, and enjoy deeply.  Try to speak as little as possible when drinking the tea , or to speak of good things, like dreams and love. This is tea time, not happy hour…share heavy stuff on some other occasion.

Tea time is, or can be, a meditation on how the day is going, and how it can go, and one of the nicest and simplest luxuries you can offer yourself is to brew a cup, and drink often. If you find your tea habit is beginning to cost you, invest in a few good mints and balms and plant them in the garden. You won’t be disappointed.

You will be asking soon, though, with no apprehension: “Anyone care for some tea?”