The Coffee’s On

My grandparents used to drive across three states in the middle of the night to reach my great grandmother. No matter the time of their arrival, there was always a pot of coffee on to welcome them. My grandparents and great grandmother would tuck my father and uncle into bed and stay up all night talking. They couldn’t wait to catch up.

I wonder how many millions and billions of relationships have been strengthened by coffee chats? How many of us have found comfort in starting our days with that first cup? Perhaps it’s been in the kitchen with a loved one or silently greeting God’s creation at the window? Maybe you’ve groggily yet cheerfully gathered around the coffee pot at work? Possibly it’s been around a table at noon with others who understand or at a café where you finally met?

Look at the Starbucks and coffee shops that have spread like wildfire across this country and around the world as people not only seek out the caffeine but also the warm smiles shared over the counter as joyful baristas ask your name or already know it. Hours and hours are spent in these coffee shops in the comfort of friends or even in the comfort of just not being alone.

Oh, coffee, yes, I am thankful for you.

I’m thankful for the memories of meeting my friends almost daily as teenagers at the Hillcrest coffee shop in Little Rock drinking giant chai tea lattes not worrying about the world revolving around us only caring about each other and that moment. It really was all ok.

I’m thankful for the ways you kept us awake giggling through our studies in college and leading us to the completion of those papers and preparing us for exams.

I’m thankful for the strength you gave me to lift my head and push my cart through Target and smile through every aisle the first time I left my daughter at home with my husband after she was born.

I’m thankful that you bring new people into my life and that you give me time with my dearest friends and colleagues. That you give us a time out to catch up, to listen, to share, to solve, to just be.

I’m thankful for every cup and conversation shared, especially with my parents and my mother-in-law, who always make sure the coffee’s on, and I’m thankful to my husband, who may not drink coffee but who knows how important putting the coffee on can be.

Here’s to sharing that next cup, everyone.

With love and light,

LT

I Talked to God at Starbucks

Sunday afternoon, in a deserted downtown that wasn’t mine, God leaned out of a Starbucks window to smile at me and assure me that everything was going to be ok.

For decades my mother has been collecting holiday decorations of every kind. As the seasons change so does the décor of my parents’ home. There is quite the organizational system of boxes and timing to make sure everything is displayed appropriately for each festivity.

Every season is sweet. Although there is a lot, nothing is overdone, and each piece is lovingly displayed to bring the viewer joy. Each holiday is made special and the house presents itself as an open invitation to celebrate with family and friends.

Halloween has its own special place. When Nannie and Poppa became grandparents, their friends, the other grandparents, suggested a special gathering of grandchildren at my parents’ home for Halloween. They wanted their grandchildren to see Nannie’s wonderful display of ghosties, pumpkins, witches, bats and spiders, too. Delighted to entertain, Nannie’s Trick or Treat was born.

It is a charming afternoon of sweet treats around the kitchen table, oohs and ahs over the decorations adorning every flat service and available hook, a yard full of inflatable cats and pumpkins, crafts around my father’s childhood bunny table, the great leaf pile, trees to climb, a piñata and treasure hunt. The big moment is when the children line up for the costume parade and early trick or treat at neighbors’ homes. It is lovely, good fun for all.

It was after this wonderful afternoon with my parents, my children and my beloved extra parents (our family friends) and their grandchildren that I drove into that line at Starbuck’s to get the pumpkin spice latte I knew I would need to get me the two and a half hours home.

The children were already settled into their video in the back seat when I placed my order. As I waited in line, I prayed.

God, please help us get back home safely. I know I’m tired, but I know I’ve got this with your help. It’s been a big weekend, and I’m so thankful for the many memories you helped us create today and yesterday. Please help us down the road.

It was finally my turn at the window. I had prayed, but I was still feeling anxious. The woman at the window handed me my latte, but then something was different. She leaned forward making direct eye contact with me, which I actually had to catch because I was moving on to my cup holder. She smiled the most radiant smile at me and clearly spoke to me, “I hope you have a great afternoon.”

I smiled back and said, “Thank you, you, too.” But she wasn’t done with me. She kept her eye contact until she was sure I knew she meant it. I did a double take, and smiled back at her, for real. There was a recognition from both of us and suddenly I thought to myself, “Well, hi, God, yes, thank you. I will have a good afternoon on the road.” I practically giggled as I drove a way, and I could see from the corner of my eye that she was still smiling as she turned from the window.

It was definitely a Carrie Underwood “Jesus Take the Wheel” kind of drive home, but I will forever be thankful for God’s message of love and comfort to me at Starbuck’s before I hit the road.

Dear God, Thank you for loving me and inspiring that beautiful Starbuck’s lady to lean forward just when I needed her to help me. I hope that I can be that love and light when someone needs it the most, too. Let us all be reminders to one another that we are never alone and that in that Oneness is great strength, guidance and love.

With love and light,
LT