Unveiling with Teas.
Since the moment we are born into this world, many of us have been conditioned with certain social, cultural or religious values that our family, school, society instill in us. From the day when we start learning how to walk and talk, we often learn by imitation, that is, we copy different gestures, tone of voice, choice of diction and many more that we observe from our parents, grandparents, school teachers, friends, daycare center, etc. When we grow into adolescence and adulthood, we continue to subconsciously receive mass information and make a “mental imprint” of them from books, magazines, internet, podcasts, news, social media, etc. If we pay close enough attention, a lot of our habits, likes and dislikes, values are heavily influenced by this very same information that we pick up from our surroundings.
When we can slow down to reflect on our view and perception of our world, we gradually notice how far we have deviated from what we truly are deep within- our truest, authentic self before all of this conditioning we have been exposed to. If we can start giving ourselves a full, silent moment everyday by brewing tea in a mindful way, we can connect with Nature through our teas and also our True Nature. When we focus on the very moment while we have our tea without outside distractions, we are putting our teas and ourselves in the spotlight. We can then go into a deeper, introspective thinking, reflecting on events or things that stand out to us on the day, the week, the year, the decade and even our whole life.
Teas have the special magic of making us awake (caffeine) and relaxed (tea catechins and antioxidants such as epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) and amino acid L-theanine when consumed with caffeine) at the same time. When we are more alert, we can focus with clarity whereas feeling calmer can improve memory and attention. Therefore, when we anchor ourselves in the moment with tea, we gain clarity and a better understanding of ourselves and our life. If we are willing to delve even deeper through the pages of our history, we start to realize how habitual our life routine has become, frequently bombarded with different obligations and responsibilities, and conditioning of values from outside of us that have been so embedded in our life. Teas have the magic to help us remove the veil of our limited perceptions of this world to create space for us to experience a more whole and integrated version of reality and ourselves. When we can savour a cup of tea with attention, focus and clarity, we can see our very own reflection in the tea liquor-our most authentic, unmasked self.
What are some of the habits, thoughts and values that you’ve picked up since childhood?
Happy Brewing!
