In my early adult years, I was not into coffee. Diet Coke was my drink of choice for consuming caffeine daily, and a demanding job usually had me starting my first can early in the morning. Cola got me through each day, and my last one was usually in the late afternoon. Even with that high consumption, I would fall into bed at night exhausted! Ah, do I ever miss those days! It was not until I met my husband that I was lured into the pleasures of enjoying a nice hot cup of coffee to start the day. While I enjoyed the aroma, it became primarily my replacement for caffeine. No cream, no sugar – just black. Breakfast blend was good, and fully caffeinated, if you please!
On this National Coffee Day, I cannot imagine starting any day without a cup of coffee. I still drink it black, nothing in it, but now I use half-caff. Amazing the concessions we make as we age! And I am not alone. There are estimated to be 1 billion people around the world who drink an average of 2-3 cups a day with the Scandinavian countries leading the way with over 5 cups. The world produces roughly 200 million bags of coffee beans each year to keep all those coffee drinkers supplied. If you add in the cafes, coffee retailers, and ready-to-drink products, the market is worth about $250 billion annually. That, my friends, is a lot of coffee!
One only needs to experience a lengthy power outage or a failed coffee maker to understand the ramifications of not having that well anticipated and coveted first cup of morning coffee. Or struggle through the ‘nothing by mouth’s edict of diagnostic tests or procedures scheduled throughout the day to know that much is lost when that first cup does not come until later in the day, if at all. For a myriad of reasons, the day feels off … sometimes it cannot be fully recovered. Who knew? And why? Is there nothing that quite sets us up for success each day better than a hot cup of liquid?
I realize that for me, morning coffee is a ritual. After I have poured that first steaming cup I sit quietly and my thoughts turn to the day ahead. I am grateful for another day. I take inventory of what I need to do and in what order. I give license to acknowledge my concerns and pray for guidance in dealing with the task list. And as I take up the day with a renewed sense of hope and understanding for what lies ahead, the caffeine does its job to awaken me and get the dopamine and adrenaline flowing. Coffee is the ignition key that essentially starts my engine!
It serves another purpose that I believe has helped me become a better caregiver. As I continue to age, I am aware that the way I react to stress and the way I treat others is far more in my control than I ever realized in my coca cola days. Finding the patience to weather the storms, meet the challenges, and celebrate the joys presented each day is an intentional plan to live my life as it unfolds. As I sip the coffee, I am reminded it is part of my one-day-at-a-time strategy, but with a resolve to do it better. Yesterday is gone, tomorrow may not come, but today there is a plan.
Life is no longer a question about whether I am lucky or unlucky, blessed or cursed, filled with optimism or utter despair. It is even becoming less about what I have or who I share it with. The gratitude comes simply because I have been given another day. There is much to do, and I am still able to do it. How the day is spent will be essentially up to me. And whether I succeed or fail at the plan, it will unfold – perhaps just as it was meant to. “This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalms 118:24
That warm cup of black coffee allows me to step into each day with a calm resolve to make it count!
UP FOR DISCUSSION: Are you a coffee drinker? How do you start your day? Does it begin with gratitude? Please share your thoughts below.
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