Tranquilosophy: Sip Tea
Week 24: Sip Tea
Green tea with rose petals and mint. Black tea with marigold and cornflower. White tea with violet petals. The options are endless.
I’ve just returned home after hosting the Penning in Paris retreat where I hit Angelina’s, Ladurée, and many sidewalk cafés for a yummy cup of exotic tea blends.
This image captures my final pot of le thé vert à la menthe {mint green tea} consumed before heading to the airport yesterday. I savored it slowly, paying special attention to the hints of flavor resting on my tongue before sliding down my throat.
To sip tea can be a mindfulness practice. Zen Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hahn teaches, “Drink your tea slowly and reverently, as if it is the axis on which the world revolves—slowly, evenly, without rushing toward the future. Live the actual moment. Only this moment is life.”
Connect to your breath. Create an intention for the day, for the moment, or for the time it takes to consume your cup of tea. Heat the water. Listen to it boil. Choose your pleasure: grassy, fruity, flowery, blooming. Pour the water over your tea and listen to it hit the bottom of the cup.
Let it steep for two to five minutes depending on the type of tea. Smell the aroma of your chosen infusion. Feel the warm cup in your hands. Observe the steam rising. Taste the tea in your mouth. Swish it around. Note the flavors. Then let it slide down your throat.
You don’t need any fancy equipment—simply a mug, hot water, tea. And time. Time to be present and to tune in to your senses.
If you’re more of a coffee person, no problem, the same process applies. Rather than gulping it down en route to your next meeting, feel the warmth on your skin, take in the aromas, and savor its time in your mouth.
This week create a ritual out of a favorite libation. Take time making it. Put it in a fancy mug. Sit down with the beverage and sip it like a fine wine. Connect to your breath and notice what comes up as you slow down.
Share your experience this week in our Facebook group. Snap a photo of your cuppa tea and share it using #52weekstranquility.
Watch for Week 25 of 52 Weeks of Tranquility here next week or have it delivered to your inbox.
Thank you for being here with us. Bisous. x
52 Weeks of Tranquility
This complimentary program is designed to help us stay motivated and engaged in 2015. Each week I’ll send inspiration to your inbox via Love Notes.
Joining later in the year? No worries, read previous weeks here.
To find support and community, join the private Facebook group and use hashtag #52weekstranquility to create additional online connections.
Connect live by calling in to seasonal Tranquilosophy podcasts. Next one happening Monday, June 22. Can’t join us live? Recordings are available.
May we savor deep moments of tranquility.
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