Morning Tea

6:30 AM. I’ve been lying here in bed half awake for an hour. Sandy softly breathing in slumber beside me. I gently pull back my side of the blankets and slip out of bed and into my bathrobe. The shades on the window make the room very dark. Careful not to stumble I quietly open and close the bedroom door. Time for tea and some quiet time.

Our blond haired 5year-old ball of energy grandson, Collin, is spending the night with us at the cabin. Need to be quiet so as not to wake him. As I enter the living room I see him curled up on the floor in his blue blanket, lying next to our dog Rusty. Both look up as I stand in the door way looking at them. I let Rusty out to do his morning ritual. Collin, wrapped in his blanket, gets into my old recliner and snuggles down.

I open all the window blinds and let the gentle morning light flood the room. Time for tea. Filling the tea kettle with fresh cold spring water, I set it to boil on the stove. Taking two cups, I place in each a bag of sweet coconut Chai, with a teaspoon of honey and cold milk. In Collin’s, I add a dash of chocolate syrup. Water at a boil, I add it to the mixture and stir.

Sitting across from each other at the table we wait. The hard part of the tea ritual is waiting for it to cool. We both savor the aroma and the moment as both flood the room. I hand Collin a spoon with which he dips and softly blows on the steaming Chai, impatient for the first taste.

"Is it good?" I ask.

He smiles and dips for another sip. He spooning and me sipping, we look out the window at the awaking valley.

"There’s fog covering the hills," Collin says, "and it’s quiet."

"Listen to the quiet," I say.

His gaze is now turned again to the field with purple lupine in full bloom and the stream meandering the valley. He is contemplative for a brief moment then turns to me and says, "It’s really quiet." I nod as we continue spooning and sipping our morning tea.

Cherish these moments Papa, cherish these moments.