Tea Time

This post was originally published December 14, 2023.

Most people I meet are surprised when I say that I don’t drink coffee, but I grew up in a household where neither parent drank it, so it was never included in my routine. I did, however, grow up in a house where my mother drank a lot of tea.

I don’t remember how old I was when I started drinking tea regularly. My relationship with it changed over the years, and I didn’t use it as a vehicle for caffeine. I first started by drinking Lipton black tea filled with sugar. Over time, I grew lazy and stopped putting in the sugar. I had read, after all, that black tea was supposed to be good for you.

I will never claim to be an expert on tea or even good at making it. I never pay attention to steep times, and I never tried loose leaf tea until I studied abroad in Ireland.

A friend of mine—the same one who took me to Norway—was showing me around a Norwegian store in Cork. They had a few tubs of loose leaf tea for you to buy. My friend was showing me them and she had to help me understand that I needed to scoop the loose leaf tea into paper bags and pick up a tea infuser to use it. For the life of me, I cannot remember what those tea flavors were, but I do remember having the intrusive thought as I walked through airport security that they might stop me, thinking that my tea was drugs.

They didn’t.

When I flew over to Scotland, it was prime time to learn just how good tea could taste. With centuries of practice, the United Kingdom was undeniably the place where I had the best tea I’ve ever drank. It was at The Elephant House cafe. They put a cute little teapot on the table next to me filled with my requested chai tea, and I drank all of it. I went back the next day because I couldn’t get enough.

I’ve since bought cute mugs and tea infusers. I collect different kinds of tea, filling an entire cabinet shelf with it. In the cold months, a warm drink is welcome, and in the hot months, I’ll ice it. I drink loose leaf tea and tea from bags. My favorites are chai and ginger green tea. In the evening, I’ll pull out my non-caffeinated tea, if I want to drink something with flavor. I pull out my boxes of yogi tea, which I mostly buy just so I can read the notes on the tags.

I’ve realized that drinking tea has become a habit of mine. One that has been ingrained into my thought process and lifestyle over time. The ritual of making tea has become as prominent as writing has been for me. I’ll wake up, put on the kettle, and sit at my desk. Little joys, I guess. Even the most daunting tasks can be simplified by a comforting cup of tea.