Gong fu cha diary: Second Day

Lughnasa                                                           Harvest Moon

Beginning, slowly, to get the hang of the chinese way of tea.  Yes, it requires a bunch of beginning moves like warming the pot, the pitcher, the cup and rinsing the leaves after that.  It also involves a quick count to pour the water on the tea, then over the pot, then pour the tea out of the pot.

But.  The tea tastes great and you can keep using the same tea leaves for at least six infusions.  That means after the first pot, the next five are straight forward and one pot of tea can last almost a day.

Still a long way from having the nuances, especially when it comes to buying the tea itself, but that will come with time.

Friends

Lughnasa                                                            Harvest Moon

Friends Tom Crane and Bill Schmidt offer some alternatives to the paradox of time and learning I wrote about in Prospective Nostalgia.  Tom urges stretching the notion of the humanly possible: “Do not think that what is hard for you to master is humanly impossible; but if a thing is humanly possible, consider it to be within your reach.” Marcus Aurelius.  I agree.  It was just this attitude that let me take up Latin even though I felt languages were beyond me.   A helpful reminder.

Bill recommends reading for the hell of it.  Walking in the woods for no purpose.  I read a lot just for the hell of it.  A lot.  And I agree that it helps open up human experience.  I’ve fallen away, recently, from walking in the woods to no purpose.  Used to do it quite a bit.  Likewise a helpful reminder.

I appreciate these thoughts.  Thanks, guys.