How Do You Take Your Coffee?  Stressed or Unstressed?

It’s Your Choice

Coffee is one of those things that everyone enjoys a little differently.  My father can’t have his hot enough and once it cools, it gets dumped on the curb on his way to work.  If my mother doesn’t have her special sugar in a cup of decaf, it won’t do the trick.  Companies have made millions attempting to get each of our requests exactly right.

This morning I realized just how much stress I put into getting my coffee right in the morning.  I like mine relatively hot, but not too hot, with just the right amount of organic cream.  My husband knows how to put just enough in the bottom so when he pours the coffee on top, it will mix in perfectly.  I wait for a few moments until it is just right for temperature.  Then, it happens…for a period of about 10 minutes, my coffee is at the perfect hotness to give me that sweet sense of pleasure and maybe even the reassurance that I will be productive today.

A Chance to Laugh at Yourself

But what if the phone rings or the kids forget something or Erik stops me in the hall?  That’s right, I’ve missed my moment.  I could microwave it but I know that the taste of microwaved coffee tastes just wrong for me.  I could add more hot coffee to it but I know that will throw off the balance of the cream in the current cup.  In a very short time, something that was once a symbol of success for my day has become a figure representing a lost opportunity for both my taste buds and possibly my feelings toward my work and family.

I know I’m not the only one.  How many others have had their thoughts slowly sink toward discouragement because a small element in the day was simply not meeting our level of perfection?  When I stopped to really examine my series of thoughts in regards to my coffee this morning I was truly thinking “What in the world?”  No one put this stress on me.  It was a choice.  I opted for an attitude of frustration because of lukewarm coffee.  However, when I really investigated my day today, I noticed how few other things I had to complain about.  I was choosing to stress over my coffee because I simply didn’t see anything else extremely stressful about my day today.  How could I not stop to laugh at myself?

It’s Still Your Choice

Right away, my attitude changed.  After that giggle to myself, I focused on the beautifully lit Christmas tree that we completed last night.  I recalled that Erik had done the dishes so I could get the laundry caught up.  In addition, I remembered what I spend my time sharing with my audiences about learning from life’s adventures.  Could an imperfect cup of coffee be today’s life adventure?  It doesn’t take a dramatic episode to help us learn how to laugh.  We can learn that through even the smallest daily items, even coffee.  You get to make that choice!