A Cup of Tea and a Letter

Dear Friend,

I have noticed something curious.

A letter can make a cup of tea taste a little different.

Perhaps it is because a letter asks us to slow down.

There is no little sound telling us that a message has arrived.

No blinking screen.

No hurry to answer.

Just an envelope waiting quietly in the mailbox.

And when we open it, there are someone's words waiting inside.

I received a letter from a dear friend recently.

We have been pen pals for a year now.

Of course, we aren't strangers to one another between letters.

We send messages.

We share pictures.

We have little conversations that travel through the day.

But a letter feels different.

A letter says,

I thought about you long enough to sit down and write.

I rather like that.

So when a letter arrives, I like to make a cup of tea.

I open the envelope.

I settle into a comfortable chair.

And for a little while, I let the rest of the world wait.

Perhaps that is one of the quiet gifts of a letter.

It gives us permission to linger.

I read slowly.

Sometimes I smile.

Sometimes I stop and read a sentence twice.

Sometimes I find myself imagining my friend sitting somewhere with her own cup of tea, perhaps wondering whether her letter has arrived yet.

And suddenly...

we are sharing a cup of tea.

Not really, of course.

She may be miles away.

We may be sitting in completely different rooms.

But for those few moments, distance seems to become a rather small thing.

There are words between us.

A little piece of someone's day.

A little piece of mine.

And tea.

Always tea.

I think there is something rather special about sharing tea this way.

A cup doesn't have to be sitting on the same table.

Sometimes it can travel through a letter.

Sometimes friendship travels that way too.

It doesn't always need grand gestures.

Sometimes it is simply,

I saw this and thought of you.

I wanted to tell you about my day.

Here is something that made me smile.

I hope you are doing well.

Little things.

Ordinary things.

And yet, somehow, they become treasures.

Perhaps that is why I have come to love letters so much.

They make ordinary moments feel worth keeping.

A cup of tea.

A quiet afternoon.

A thought that might otherwise have drifted away.

A friend who took the time to put words on paper.

So, Dear Friend, if you happen to be reading this with a cup of tea nearby...

I hope you will stay for another sip.

There is no need to hurry.

Let the tea grow a little cooler.

Let the world wait outside the door for a few minutes.

Perhaps think of someone you haven't heard from lately.

Perhaps send them a little note.

Or perhaps simply enjoy the quiet.

Because sometimes joy doesn't arrive with a great deal of noise.

Sometimes it arrives in an envelope.

And sometimes the loveliest thing we can do with it...

is sit down and share a cup of tea.

♥ Until we meet again...

May your tea be warm,

May your books be well loved,

May your mailbox hold unexpected kindness,

and may you always have someone with whom to share a little joy.

With warm wishes,

Paisley Dragon ♥