Joy in a Cup

I am crazy about tea.

Tea for me is soothing. It can be relaxing, a pick-me-up, or help going to sleep. I drink black, oolong, green, and herbal teas. I have one tea I drink every morning when I get up, and another I drink right before bed to help me sleep. My cabinet is filled with boxes of tea, and I go through them fairly quickly.

I would call myself a teaophile. I'm not sure if that's a word, but I'm making it a word!

A couple of months ago, I ordered a bunch of tea from Stash Teas, an American tea company located in Portland, Oregon. I recently ordered from Twinings, which is a 300-year-old tea company with a store in London that's been in the same location for hundreds of years. I'm exploring new teas to see what I like and what I don't.

The top row is the tea that I just ordered, and the bottom row are teas I get at my local grocery store. My two favorites are Irish Breakfast and Lady Grey. I drink Irish Breakfast every morning when I first wake, so I have a large box. I've tried all the new ones and am especially enjoying the Prince of Wales and English Afternoon teas. I'm not super fond of the Ceylon Orange Pekoe.

At Christmas, I got a tea-for-one set made of bone china. It's beautiful and fun to use. The pot is about sixteen ounces and fills the cup almost twice.

I only use mugs for chai and herbal teas now. All my other tea I drink with this tea set.

Tea for me can be a coping skill to deal with what's going on in my life. It's relaxing for me, and the act of making tea is calming for me. Boiling the water and waiting for the steep to finish so I can take out the bag and sweeten it. The smell of the tea relaxes me, and when it hits my tongue, it's a peaceful sigh.

Lady Grey tea especially relaxes me. When I take a sip of it, a wave of relaxation and peace flows from my mouth through the rest of my body. It's like my entire body heaves a sigh and relaxes. Absolute bliss.

Starting my day with tea instead of the coffee I used to drink has several advantages. First is less caffeine eases my anxiety. Caffeine greatly affects anxiety, so less caffeine is always better. I went from over 700 mg of caffeine each morning to just over 100 mg. A drastic drop that took some time to get used to. It's definitely had an effect of my anxiety levels.

Second is that I'm starting my day with something that brings me peace and happiness rather than just functionality that I enjoyed. I begin my day relaxed, and as I continue to drink the occasional cup throughout the day, I stay more relaxed. It's a wonderful way to start my day.

For me, tea is bliss. There are so many teas in the world to explore, and I'm limited by funds. Eventually, I'll explore the goodness available for me to drink. I rarely drink coffee anymore, and enjoy the peace of tea all through the day.

I think it's time for a cuppa.

Photo Credit: Katherine Elizabeth