So much of life is centered on food and/or
drink (whether or not that is a good thing).
I remember at age 20 being bored at a party and getting bombed on straight gin BUT
I also know how God used it for good.
From that experience, I never could acquire a taste for alcohol.
No…my
drink is coffee. Coffee is not just a
drink; it’s an experience! I first
learned to drink coffee on my first full time job. Forty hours a week at First
National Bank of Akron, manually looking up credit ratings on index cards for branches
and other banks. [I will always remember
“Harry Mann on Dick Street.] Coffee then
was majorly creamed and sugared. Moving
on to BFGoodrich, it was a way to break up the day. A quarter in the vending machine down the
hall, rank coffee in a thin paper cup, then walk back to the desk…sometimes
with Lantz peanut butter crackers. I had
then switched to black.
Some of my best conversations have been
around coffee. It’s easier to speak
deeply and listen intently when you are not fiddling around with silverware and
balancing food and only talking when you’re mouth isn’t full. That includes conversing and listening to
myself.
As an introvert, I have spent many hours in
a coffee shop with my books, my journal, and my Bible…especially
when I was renting an apartment. Now a days, I can enjoy that same pleasure on
the porch, on the deck, or inside of my home.
When Ed came into my life, we often would go to Caribou or Arabica with
our Bibles and write.
Coffee brings people together. Some of my
most meaningful times with my dearest friends have been over coffee. Heather gave me insight into how good
TGIFridays coffee is. I discovered that Swenson’s coffee is top notch, i.e.,
Douwe Egberts until recently not even available outside of a restaurant purchase. Coffee with
the right person can energize me, validate me, slow me down, bring laughter,
provide insight, provide me with alternative ideas and solutions, and encourage
Christian fellowship.
