We live in a very fast paced world. The reality is, life passes by in a blink of an eye. We always think we have more time as we grind away at out daily responsibilities. My purpose in life is to help others. There are times when life becomes so consumed with helping others, I neglect myself. Eventually, my cup runs dry and I have nothing else to give. I believe there are many people who feel the same way.
This has been one of those weeks. The sort of week that left me scavenging the cabinets at work for a morsel of food because I had no time for lunch (or breakfast or dinner). It was the sort of week that coffee was made for. The type of week where you are too exhausted from the days events to even think about making and eating dinner (even though you are still starving). Getting by on a few hours of sleep because your brain just won’t stop kind of weeks. The sort of week where thinking about self-care piles on even more stress to the day. It was that sort of week.
While the week seemed to be continually draining, I knew I needed to recharge. I needed to replenish myself enough to make it through the following day. I did the only thing I had energy for. I made a cup of tea.
Have you ever heard the saying, “You cannot pour from an empty cup”? It is absolutely true. If there is nothing in the cup, how can you pour from it. So, I took it literally and filled up a cup with tea. It is not the tea itself, but the ritual which accompanies the tea. You see, tea is not just a beverage. Tea is meant to be an event. Afternoon tea, High tea, tea parties, there is really more to tea than what is in the cup.
I first learned about tea being an event of sorts while in India. Tea is to be sipped and savored in a special cup. It is a time in the day when you are meant to take pause as the world zooms by. The moment is to be cherished. It is a reminder to slow down. Not only does it help to slow down, but it helps to slowly recharge some of the depleted energy. The cup is to meant to be special rather than disposable because those moments sipping tea while paused are not to be simply tossed away. We are meant to take that moment that has filled our literal and personal cup and hold onto it as we re-enter the fast paced world.
This week depleted most of what I had, but I was still able to enjoy my cup of tea!
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This post is republished on Medium.
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Photo credit: Loverna Journey on Unsplash