Tea and crumpets? The cliche British stereotype. Really just hot water and leaves is all it boils down to. Yet however, tea has such a connotation to it. When my parents have had a hard day, all they want is a nice steaming cup of hot tea. Half of the cup filled with hot water, and the other half with steamed skim milk. Foam on top, or sometimes whipped cream, with two sweeteners. "Awake" decaf tea most of the time, but sometimes my Mom can have a caffeinated chai tea in the morning. It's so incredibly customary to invite a new friend or colleague to get a cup of tea or coffee. For some reason, over the years, these hot beverages have become a part of our culture. What we use to introduce ourselves. We drink our tea over getting to know someone better. We may offer tea to a friend who needs to be comforted. "Maybe we should grab a cup of coffee sometime." It's such a natural thing to say "coffee" or "tea", even while, as my favorite movie Good Will Hunting tells us:
Girl: "Well maybe we could grab a cup of coffee then."
Boy: "Great, or maybe we could go out and eat a bunch of caramels."
Girl: "What?"
Boy: "Well when you think about it, it's just as arbitrary as drinking coffee."
The girl asked the boy to drink a hot beverage with him, very customary and therefore, socially acceptable. Then the boy suggests that they go out and eat some caramels. Caramels aren't unusual. Just a very ordinary of an item as coffee really; yet somehow, it appears as weird and socially bizarre to offer to take a girl on a date to eat caramels. Tea and coffee have a comforting demeanor to them. A drink that can bring people together.
Tea has always been a part of my life. My parents usually don't go more than a few waking hours without having their warm and comforting beverage. It wakes them up in the morning when the drowsiness of the previous night is still waiting to wear off so they can start the day. My parents insist it can help any head or throat ache. Something wrong? Have a cup of tea. So what is it about this very unsubstantial beverage that makes it such a staple in our daily life?
Is it the fact that tea has been proven to contain extreme health benefits as small as losing weight and as extreme as preventing tumors? Maybe it's the small amount of caffeine that is just enough to put a spring in one's step in the early morning hours No, none of this quite fits the reason that I have begun to share my parents' love for tea. I am one to always, and I mean always be cold. If anyone brushes my fingers throughout the day, they can't help but comment on how they feel less like fingers and more like blocks of ice. So even on a warm summer day, when I'm shivering from the air conditioning, I'll make myself a cup of tea. When I snap the cup's lid in place, I take it in my hands, the heat radiating through the thick plastic. I raise the cup to my lips for a first sips. It's one of those drinks that you can feel as it goes all the way down. The warmth that spreads throughout my entire body. That's what makes tea so great.
So now, as I sit here, sipping at my cup of "English Breakfast" tea; nuzzled between the folds of a nice warm blanket and watching a movie with the family and hearing the patter of rain on the window, I can't imagine anything better.
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