my new favorite teacup
I go to one of two (or sometimes, both) very nearby Goodwills every other saturday, when the whole store is fifty percent off. I admit to preferring to thrift in quiet, on weekday evenings when I'm the only customer in the store, for example, and I can lose myself and my tiring everyday thoughts in the racks I slowly scan for treasure. But I can't deny the extra thrill of finding My New Favorite ________ (which maybe I didn't even know I needed, but as soon as I spy it I wonder how I ever lived without?) for half off.
The first thing I do every morning is to set the kettle on the stove for tea. I look forward to my first cup of tea in the morning before I even go to bed at night. Yeah, sure, the caffeine boost is swell. I don't remember what adequate sleep feels like so I'll take whatever help I can get. But it's more than that. It's the whistling of my kettle, it's the steam, the smell of the tea in the cannister when I take off the lid. It's an important anchor in my day, a simple ritual of Beginning. And I am very particular about which mugs I will use. Oh, in a pinch, I'll use whatever is clean. And if I'm having a cup of herbal tea before bed, any cup or mug will do, it doesn't matter. I have several I rotate through and they've served me well over the years. I wasn't looking for a new one. But last Saturday, I found my New Favorite Teacup. It's surprisingly sturdy, slightly oversized, lovely to look at (bird graphic, hello!), and it has a lid! Secondhand perfection for a dollar.
