I "made" coffee for my grandma.
Ran the water as hot as I could
Then added the spoonfuls of instant Sanka
And the little Saccarine pills that fizzed in the coffee.
The I would make a cup for myself as well
It was decaf after all, so no harm done.
It was then I learned what simple joy there was
In presenting to someone a simple cup of coffee.
By the time I was 13
My grandmother was gone
And I was drinking the real thing with my parents,
They had a coffee grinder that held a pound
Of Eight O'Clock coffee beans
That we ground directly into the coffee pot.
For the rest of my life
I have worshipped at the altar
Of the Goddess Caffeina.
No matter how broke I was
I made sure there was coffee.
No just enough for my household
But enough for anyone that might drop in.
Coffee is hospitality.
Coffee is me now, and the younger me
That stirred the Sanka for her grandma.
And if I wish to gauge the depth of my affection
I ask myself this:
Truly you may have the shirt off my back,
But would I let you have the last scoop of coffee?
I didn't grow up in a coffee household so I never grew to enjoy it. I do have fond memories of visiting my grandmother and waking up to her brewing her coffee. There wasn't anything else like it in the world.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing that moment in time with your grandmother and your love of coffee. I enjoyed it.
Hi, my name is Mary and I'm a coffee addict...but I'm not going to any meetings unless they're held at Starbucks!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great reminisce of that time with your grandma! Coffee is one of those things that lets us come together and share, and thank goodness (and Sanka) for that. Really enjoyed this poem, very nice!
That's exactly it - coffee is hospitality. What do we say when people come over?
ReplyDelete"Would you like a cup of coffee?" I remember serving Sanka packets to customers when I was a waitress. I love how you measure the depth of your relationships - would they get the last scoop? lol That's great! I liked this poem a lot. Good to the last drop!
Coffee...keeps me alive and gives me some hope for each day. Your story is so detailed and beautiful.
ReplyDeleteCoffee and me
ReplyDeletewhat a beautiful relationship
you have nurtured and described....
I hope my love for coffee does not cause you any jealously issues!
What a lovely mix of memory and humor. I can taste that coffee. I want that coffee! The only brand in town -- Goddess Caffeina!
ReplyDeleteCoffee has been a moving force in my life since I was 12 - and a part of my life always...
ReplyDeleteI wrote about coffee on Day 3, "Coffee-Flavored Conversations"...without our morning coffee, my marriage would not be what it is!
I love the way you weave your memories so deftly! <3
Thank you for all the kind words. We really do intertwine our nostalgia and our food, dont we?
ReplyDeleteIts funny how many of the things we do and how we do them relates back to what we do as children.