Poem in Your Pocket Day, 2015

Poem in Your Pocket Day
April 30, 2015

The first bowl washed the cobwebs from my mind —
The whole world seemed to sparkle.
A second cleansed my spirit
Like purifying showers of rain,
A third and I was one of the Immortals —
What need now for austerities
To purge our human sorrows?
Worldly people, by going in for wine,
Sadly deceive themselves.
For now I know the Way of Tea is real.
~Chio Jen

10 Year Anniversary and Giveaway!

This photo represents my tea journey: From British to Chinese and Taiwanese, to Japanese. 

The flower represent my husband's always-present love and encouragement.

The photo also represents friendship, family and adventure, as the things here
are gifts from loved ones or treasures from travels.

10 years ago today, I began this journey into blogging.  The little secret is that I did it as a work project, because I needed to develop training on blogging, and first I needed to learn how!  ;-)  What I didn't know is that I would stick with it for a decade and that I would make wonderful friends along the way.

I also didn't know how my tea life would grow and thrive. I started with a primary interest and business related to British-style tea. Over the years, tea took me on a journey of discovery into the leaf itself and its manifestation across many cultures - Chinese, Taiwanese, Japanese. I have had the great privilege to travel to many of these countries in pursuit of tea. I look forward to learning so much more! Truly, tea is a remarkable way to learn about our one precious world.

I am humbled and ever so grateful for tea's influence in my life, and for yours.  Thank you for reading and commenting. 

To celebrate, I'm hosting a giveaway!  Just leave a comment and I will enter you into a drawing for tea, poetry and a surprise!

Happy Earth Day! And Morning Cup of Tea by Walterrean Salley

Thank you to Walterrean Salley for this lovely poem.  It very much captures my feelings about tea in the early morning and fit perfectly with this photo I snapped of a sunrise back in January.

The Tea Party by Jessica Nelson North

The Tea Party

~Jessica Nelson North

"I had a little tea party

This afternoon at three.

'Twas very small-

Three guest in all-

Just I, myself and me.

Myself ate all the sandwiches,

While I drank up the tea;

'Twas also I who ate the pie

And passed the cake to me."

Can you relate?  I think I could eat a whole plate of tea sandwiches alone!

Girl Scouts and Tea - A Perfect Match!

I had the wonderful pleasure of being with Girl Scouts of Western Washington this weekend.  My friend Roberta (shown above, she owns Experience Tea) has put together an amazing program that shines a light on world cultures through the lens of tea.  This program is an outreach of the NW Tea Fest. I was privileged to be a helper.  

The program explains what tea is, and then takes the girls on a journey through four tea cultures: China, Japan, England and India.  It's an experiential class.  Girls taste a variety of teas and practice brewing skills. We held two programs, grades 2 - 5 and also grades 6 - 12, and each group delighted me.  The best part, all of the grownups agreed, was watching the girls come alive throughout their learning journey.

(This photo doesn't show much because I am respecting the girls' privacy)

My role was to explain how tea made it from China to Japan, how it's consumed in Japan today (loose green tea, sencha) and to demonstrate making a bowl of matcha (above).  Both groups tasted the matcha, and I was proud of their spirit of adventure! 

My good friend AM talked about how tea made its way to England, and how the concept of Afternoon Tea was popularized, in addition to other things.  Above, she's showing a photo of Anna, the Duchess of Bedford. She also demonstrated brewing loose tea in a pot.

And we wrapped up the journey by visiting India.  Here, the girls learned about how tea is grown there and how chai is an important part of daily life.  They also go to taste chai and traditional Indian snacks.

Aren't these cool?  I want one!  

I am very excited to have been part of this program, and I hope to see this Tea and Culture program become something offered widely.  These things take time. And yet, I can't think of a better way to encourage an expansion of one's cultural awareness than through tea!  Thank you to everyone who worked to make this happen!  I am happy to support the mission of Girl Scouts, "Girl Scouting builds girls of courage, confidence, and character, who make the world a better place."   

And here's a poem written by Mimi Murray, National Operational Volunteer, GSUSA

Because the Girl

Because the girl
     has a need,
We have an obligation.
Because the girl
     has a choice,
We must be her better choice.
Because the girl
     has high expectations,
We must excel.
Because the girl
     wants to explore,
We must be her guide.
Because the girl
     wants to belong,
We must open our arms.
Because the girl
     is searching for direction,
We must be her compass.
Because the girl
     encounters times of turmoil,
We must be her safe haven.
Because the girl
     is tomorrow's woman,
We must care today.
Because of the girl…
We exist.

Finding Poetry Everywhere

When I'm operating at my best, I find poetry everywhere.

Including on napkins.  

Thank you MJ!

Bottom right quote:

"To slow down and 

take a little leisure

is the happiest

method of living."

ShanLinXi Oolong (Taiwan) and Poetry

April is National Poetry Month. I love poetry! I'm regularly moved deeply when reading or writing poems. I think truth is often best known through a poem, and it takes a brave person to write the truth. And so, I will strive to sprinkle poems liberally throughout my postings this month. Also, plan now for National Poem in Your Pocket Day, April 30th!  It's a fun day that I get giddy about each year.  

This spring finds me busy with work, home and tea life and in addition, planning for a service trip to Rwanda.  I look for frequent ways to bring calm into my life. Tea is always a remedy, as this poem explains:  

"Though I cannot flee
From the world of corruption,
I can prepare tea
With water from a mountain stream
And put my heart to rest."

~Ueda Akinari, 1734 - 1809, Japanese author and waka poet


I recently  had a few hours on a sunny afternoon to drink Winter 2014 ShanLiinXi tea from  Floating Leaves. It's a tea that's very balanced and I appreciate the fruity aftertaste.

I had the good fortune to drink this tea with Shiuwen Tai (of Floating Leaves), and she is helping our tea group appreciate the nuances of teas like this.  In addition to the aroma and taste, we spent time paying attention to the tea broth and how it feels in the mouth.  This tea was described as "creamy" for the way one experiences the feeling of the tea (not the flavor).  

The next time you're drinking an oolong tea, spend some time with the mouth feel.  Is it thick or thin? Does it coat your mouth? Does it leave your mouth feeling dry? Try not to judge, but rather experience and notice.

This burlap fabric, above, is from my China-adventures roomie.  I LOVE it!

This cute little guy was my tea companion.

Notice how much the leaves have expanded.  I used a layer of the dry, balled tea to cover the bottom of the pot and when done brewing, it filled the pot up.

OK, your turn!  Share with me your thoughts on poetry or this poem, on how to appreciate tea, on mouth feel, or on whatever you feel moved to share.