Friday, January 17, 2014

Patience (for Me) and Patient Tea

Rustic teacup with pu-erh, waiting patiently for me to put down the camera

Patience is NOT my middle name.  But it is the name of this cup.  I procured it (from J-Tea International in Eugene, OR) nearly three years ago.  I haven't used it until this week.  The cup and I were patiently waiting for the right time and the right tea.  I've dedicated the cup to shou pu-erh.  The cup is a delight to hold.  It's textural and the glaze makes a very interesting shiny pattern.  Rocks are visible in the form, giving it a very earthy feeling.  

Over the years, I've been working on the patience thing.  While not my nature, it is something I'm trying to cultivate.  Tea is a good teacher.  Some teas are "patient" in that they do well when steeped multiple times.  They open themselves, give more, blossom.  Pu-erh teas and may oolongs tend to be very patient.  These teas ask me, "How do you respond when you are repeatedly 'steeped'?"  Do I get better with each trial?

Oh, tea, I am your student.

7 comments:

  1. Oh what a lovely cup. How I would enjoy holding it in my hand. Yes, tea does teach us patience and not always an easy lesson.

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  2. Teafan12:44 PM

    I learned something new here. Patient tea - cool.

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  3. Your answer is, of course, most important. But mine is yes, Steph; you definitely do! :)

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  4. What a fresh way of looking at this topic! (You probably won't be surprised to hear that "Patience" is not exactly my middle name either!)

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  5. Great cup from Eugene potter Jayme Allen. He uses Facebook for business: https://www.facebook.com/FirebugPottery?fref=ts

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  6. Hey, Josh - Thank you for supplying the name of the artist!

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