One Cup at a Time

I came across this brilliant piece while browsing through my inbox yesterday. Instantly wished to share it with as many people as I could. Here goes:

My vision is to change the world one cup of tea at a time.

How? Consider where you are right now. In your body. In your heart. In your life. I’m guessing you’ve got dreams that you are striving for, and challenges to overcome. Somewhere, on paper or in your head there’s a list of projects that you chip away at day by day. Some projects are old and stagnant, and others are fresh and urgent.

For those of you not reading this, if you are not getting what you strive for in life then now is the time to do something different. Shatter the routine. Just stop and wake up and change. If you are reading this, then you are probably used to getting what you strive for. Continue on as you have been and chances are good that sooner or later your dreams will come true and your current challenges will yield to your efforts. What then?

When you achieve “it,” will you have more money? A bigger house? Flatter abs? More friends? Happier kids? A more loving partner? More leisure time? More happiness?

Now, imagine for a moment that everything is perfect right now, just as it is.

Imagine that, miraculously, all your dreams have come true and all your challenges overcome. You have arrived. Look around. Notice your body. Listen.

Breathe in.

And then out.

When all of your goals are hit and all of your challenges overcome, where will you be? Here. Now. Of course the future hasn’t happened. That means all your worries and what-ifs are just illusions and totally bogus. Tomorrow will always be tomorrow. And the past is past. Yesterday is forever gone. Whatever. Good, bad, or indifferent, it’s over and it will never happen again. All we have is now. This singular moment.

This is the gift you get for being alive.

If you can slow down enough to pay attention to the details of this moment then the basic goodness and raw joy of being alive is impossible to ignore.

For me, drinking tea is a reminder. The ritual preparing, serving, and drinking tea reminds me to slow down, to let my senses take over, and to let this moment flood the Now. The clatter of tea ware. The warmth of the cup. Hot steam swirling in the early morning sunlight from a cup of brilliant green sencha.

This ritual is a reminder I try to carry with me throughout the day. This is it. This one cup. This one moment. This one life.

Perfection.