Dear sweet common people, pour yourselves a cup of tea, and lend a hopeful ear to my wisdom. I wish to educate you a bit.
Have you heard of William E. Gladstone? He was Prime Minister of England in the late nineteenth century. You Americans were off on your own by then, doing your own thing, but I’m sure you kept tabs on your Homeland. Gladstone, known as the “Grand Old Man,” was known for championing the Home Rule Bill, which would have given Ireland self-rule, and has been cited by such great statesmen as Winston Chruchill as an inspiration. But I tell you about WIlliam Gladstone because of another reason.
These words he spoke in 1865, and with them I could not possibly agree more:
If you are cold, tea will warm you. If you are too heated, it will cool you. If you are depressed, it will cheer you. If you are excited, it will calm you.
This, dear commoners, is how I feel about tea. I hope you do as well. It soothes the soul. It warms the heart. It is everything you need. Liquid wisdom, the Chinese call it. And as you continue your walk though life, I hope you have a cup of tea by your side. Because the answers you are always seeking — to the questions you don’t even know to ask — are at the bottom of that cup.
As my young tea students edge closer in their tea education to an actual graduation from my tea shrine, the time draws near for me to prepare that most holy of time honored traditions — the Tea Ceremony.
Perhaps you have heard of this great tradition. But it is time you knew a bit more of it. Sit down and I shall enlighten you.
I have a funny story to tell about something that happened to me the other day. I was just doing some finishing touches on a paper about Yerba Mates (I’ve titled it “Have ya Heard About Yerba? – A Natural Pick-me-up”) when I got a nasty paper cut on my thumb. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you how much those hurt!
While I was digging around my medicine drawer, I came across this bottle of tea tree oil that My folks gave me when they came back from Australia. They told me it was good for this kind of thing, so as I swabbed my thumb, I got to wondering–what is tea tree oil, and does it have any real tea in it?
It seems everyone is always talking about coffee. In the movies, everyone is carrying a brown paper cup, jokes are made about how they take coffee; on television boys ask girls out for “a drink or a cup of coffee.” It’s as if tea doesn’t even exist! well, I am here to tell you that it does! And here’s proof:
I am sure I am not the first person to say that to you, though perhaps I am the first to not be drunkenly shouting it at your face. (If your night was as hard as I imagine it, perhaps you should read about how tea helps with a hangover). But I say it nonetheless.
I am not young. You have no doubt realized this by my extreme tea knowledge and wisdom (if not by incredibly wrinkled face and beard that stretches almost to my knees these days). So I cannot say that it delights me to see that another year has passed. But the future does indeed look bright, and I look forward to sharing it with you.
Just got back from an extended holiday with the folks. and it’s glad to be drinking abig cuppa English Breakfast Teafrom my favorite mug, with my itty bitty kitty cat lying on my feet, purring. warm and comfy and done with the stress of holiday shopping pressures. I’m sure you know what I mean!
The ‘rents made fun when they saw that I had an entire bag full of Amanzi Teas, but as I explained, I need different kinds of tea for different things, and no one can predict the future! Best to be prepared! And sure enough, I used every type of tea I brought!
The Season of Giving is over. Teato has given many beautiful gifts to many beautiful women this Christmas, but he has also received some wonderful presents. And while some lovely and generous ladies know my tastes extremely well (I love delicious tea; this is no surprise to loyal readers) others seem to know very little about me.
One lovely girl actually gave me a coffee press for Christmas. A coffee press! It’s as if we are total strangers! But all is not lost. I will make the best of it, and pass on thisimportant tea lessonto you. You can make tea with a coffee press — in fact, it’s a great way tobrew loose leaf tea, which as you know, is far superior to teabags.
Heytea guys! How are ya? Happy Ho Ho Ho and all that!
I know Christmas is almost here and everything, so I was just thinking that maybe some people are still trying to think about what to get that special someone that they just never know what to get, you know? I know, I’ve been there!
Well as I swirled a cinnamon stick around my steaming cup of Ginger Peach Tea (my very favorite kind of tea…at least for today, lol!) it occurred to me that i could totally help those people still trying to think of what last minute gift they should buy. And in case you couldn’t guess, it has to do with tea, of course!
Oh how you have missed me, no doubt. I pity you all. stirring your big cups of tea, scanning this tea blog in the hopes of seeing my cartooned face smiling back at you with a bit of good information about the best type of tea. How disappointed you must have been!
I’m afraid I have been a bit busy this past month with some sort of labour dispute among my serfs. Nothing I can’t handle–or rather, that my men can’t handle. (I try not to dirty my hands with even knowing the details of such distasteful matters). But it has resulted me in having to hole up in my fortified tower here in there with just a few barrels of my favorite loose leaf teas and couple of thick volumes of my life story.
But now that you’re boringly American holiday has passed, like my little uprising, we can focus on my favorite holiday — Christmas.
I received a notice from one of my amore loyal subjects that there was a wonderful video about tea that I should see, and now I shall share it with you.
This fun little ditty is well-animated, reminding me of the animation of my countrymen the Monty Python gang or something like that. On top of that, there are many references to my beloved country (and your less beloved homeland), both visual and otherwise. And of course, it is about my favorite subject: tea.
So enjoy this wonderful video. I know I did. And have a cup of tea. For the love of God.
