It really is amazing what warm tea, in a favorite cup, can do for the mind and soul. You have to slow down to really enjoy tea. Unlike coffee or other beverages, there is something very essential lost in drinking tea “on the go.” Tea is a stationary drink.  Preferably while sitting in a comfortable spot, with a book, a good friend, a pet, or a pad of paper and a newly sharpened pencil.

There is something about the caramel colour of tea, the smooth rim of the cup, and the swirls of the liquid that allows me to relax and alter the tempo of time. Precious moments talking with a friend, sought after time to finish the last few pages of a chapter, quality time to relax with the cat, time to jot down those exciting ideas that popped into my head yesterday.

Soft music in the background, generally something slow and soothing, increases the relaxation quality. Time slows, the background fades until barely present, the tea and I are in a place all of our own.

Why tea? Grandma and Papa always liked to drink tea – after meals, with company, and before bed.  Sometimes Grandma would let me make Papa’s tea and bring it to him.  As a child with a sore throat we were allowed to have “tea with honey” in a pretty cup.  And at special meals we drank our beverage out of a “tea cup” like the adults.  As I got older it was my job to “put the tea on” as soon as I saw company coming to visit.  People were invited “for tea” even if they drank coffee or water.

And now, I take refuge in a comfort from the past. The hurry, the worry, the overwhelming anxiety that runs my day doesn’t allow for a slowing of time or a contemplating of situation, emotion, or activity. There is a great internal resistance to my cup of tea.  My critical voice discourages it, refers to it as a waste of time, a needless reflection on a world and life that needs to be orderly and compartmentalized.

But my Wisdom wins out. I know in my heart and soul that my cup of tea is what encourages openness, exploration, sensation, a sense of me that I don’t often enjoy.  And so, I take my cup of tea and I sit. I sit in the moment and allow it without confrontation. I sit with the past and feel it without criticism.  I allow “me” to emerge and feel her way around in the real world. I sit quietly and openly, immersed in her shyness, her delight at new sensations, her creativity, her strength and determination, her spontaneous nature. But she startles easily and becomes fatigued with the internal pressure of the critical voice that curtails and reshapes her, and the external pressure of a world she never understood.

I’m left with an empty cup, and a longing for the day that I’ll be able to reintegrate that part of myself with the intellectually dominant me and the critical voice that dominates but protects.  Cup by cup my Wisdom emerges and my emotional nature discloses itself.  I’m learning to exist outside of my mind.

It really is amazing what warm tea, in a favorite cup, can do for the mind and soul.

Thanks for joining me here today on the blog.  I’m so happy you took the time! As I mentioned in the last blog post, this blog has taken on many forms in the last 6 years.  It began as a way to reopen my eyes to the blessings around me and at this point has morphed into an opportunity to share life with you in an effort to give back, by helping you find your best life. 

In our conversations, I will frequently use words like authenticity, abundance and faith. 

Why am I the person to have these conversations with you?  I’m glad you asked!  I have, in the last 34 years walked a very challenging, interesting and growth provoking journey with chronic depression and anxiety.  I know what it is like to feel discouraged and disillusioned about life, the world and my dreams.  I also know what it is like to rediscover my identity, purpose and destiny in the midst of chronic mental illness.

In this blog I promise to share from an authentic and honest place.  I promise not to judge.  I promise to allow you to grow at your own pace.  In turn I will encourage you to participate in the conversations, to be honest with yourself and to believe that you too can find a way to live your best life!

In the spirit of transparency, you will find that much of my journey revolves around my faith journey and my walk with Jesus. Although, ultimately, I would hope that everyone, at some point, finds that relationship for themselves, it is not a requirement that you are a Christian to follow my blog or to participate in this conversation. This conversation applies to all who wish to enter.

I believe the conversations we will have will be practical, beautiful, tough by times, growth provoking and meaningful to anyone who is willing to participate. 

Once again, welcome to Conversations with Laurie!  This is abundant life!

Until next time,

From my heart to yours!

laurie