If you visit my house, you will almost always be offered tea. Anyone who knows me knows I adore tea, it's virtually all I drink. That comes as a surprise to many in a world addicted to coffee, energy drinks, and soda. How could anyone choose, let alone prefer tea? Despite its ancient roots and antiquated practice, tea still enchants some of us.
On the Go?
Part of the allure of tea for me is its process. Tea is difficult to make. First, you must boil water to the specific temperature of the tea you are brewing: green tea at 170 degrees, oolong at 190, black at 212. Then, you must measure out an appropriate amount of your loose leaf tea into your infuser. You pour over the water and…
Wait.
This is the best part of tea. The agonizing moments spent waiting for it to be ready. See tea is not an “easy drink”. It, excluding iced tea, cannot be a quick grab n’ go item. It must be prepared and enjoyed in the same spot. Sure you can order tea to go, but anyone that has actually ever done that knows the struggles that come with on-the-go tea. It just doesn’t work. Almost every other drink, water, coffee, energy drinks, sodas, or smoothies, can be enjoyed on the go, in a bottle. But not tea. Tea is different, requiring time and attention.
Stillness
There is a certain stillness about tea. It requires you to slow down, pay attention and enjoy the moment. It anchors you to what is in front of you, whether it be a person, a great novel, or a thunderstorm on the back porch. Tea does this by requiring some precision in its creation, the right temperature, the right amount of leaves, and the right steep time. It forces you to pay attention to it or your tea will not taste good. Too many times I have gotten distracted by the wonders of the modern world that I have burned or over-steeped my tea. Or just let it get cold. To make tea it is best just to put the phone down.
Tea in itself is not some key to seeing the beauty of the present moment but is an excuse to. Tea is an excuse for me to put down my phone, close my laptop, and talk to a friend or open a book. So many interesting conversations and wonderful insights have happened over tea. I refuse to believe that is an accident. There is a beautiful simplicity to tea that demands stillness, one that I rarely see with other beverages.
The Eternal Present
Part of the great Catholic tradition is seeking to be united with Christ in the presence of God. Often we lose track of God. He is either buried in the past or to be discovered in the future. Yet Christ is with us in each moment of each day for our lives and eternity. We ought not set off to find Him in tomorrow or yesterday but in the now. The present is our meeting place with the eternal. When we get caught up in distractions we forget this reality. Moses reminds us that God is not to be found elsewhere, but His law and love are on our hearts.
“Nor is it across the sea, that you should say,
'Who will cross the sea to get it for us
and tell us of it, that we may carry it out?'
No, it is something very near to you,
already in your mouths and in your hearts;
you have only to carry it out." - Deutronomy 30:14
Tea opens me up to this “eternal present” by removing some distractions and allowing me to look around. I am free to see and to think and ponder and discuss and pray and read and encounter God. The interior life of the heart is allowed to shine forth in these moments of stillness.
In today’s age of high-speed internet, travel, and thought it is beneficial to the soul to take time in stillness and sit in the presence of the Lord. And while each person may have their own way, for I will be pouring a cup of tea.
Blessed Dom Justo Takayama, Martyr
Pray for us!