"If We Could Have Coffee..."

"If we could have coffee"...those were the words on the outside of a greeting card I read yesterday.  The inside of the cared contained words of encouragement and sort of made a plan for the sender and receiver of this card to have coffee together...that way 'all would be right in the world!'...Or, so it would seem!
When I was a little girl, and through out the time I lived at home, coffee was an event.  My dad would say, "I'm going to drink coffee!"  And, that meant in our home that he was on his way to 'The Town House' or another little diner in our town to drink coffee with his friends, most of whom were tied somehow to truck driving.  Or, when he was driving, he would talk on his CB radio, (remember those?--back before answering machines and mobile phones were invented) he'd make an acquaintance and they would stop, get fuel, and 'drink coffee'! 

Sometimes, I would get to attend these sacred events with him.  I would sip a coke or a sweet tea and the guys would talk about everything from trucks, engines, politics, log books, laughing a lot and tell stories from their travels--that meant something to them. 

Sometimes, they would have either witnessed or been part of a traffic accident.   More than one of my dad's friends was killed while driving their trucks.  And, so these events probably helped them sort out their feelings in some way about grief, about the road itself and about what the government was beginning to regulate in the trucking industry.  Of course, it is a different world today than it was in those days.  And, that is as it should be.  I probably wouldn't even recognize the 'trucking industry' of today compared to what was so much a part of my 'growing up' years...

But drinking coffee...that seems timeless, somehow! 

Even as I write this, I am watching as the 'talking heads' discuss the RNC at the Elephant Bar in Tampa Florida, on 'Morning Joe!'  Do I feel connecting to these people because I, too, am drinking coffee?  NO...resounding NO.  They are so far from my life, and the things that truly interest me. 

They are actually dissecting Ann Romney's speech from last night...did she relate to America?  Is she real?  Is she truly in love with her husband?  Do they really buy his shirts at Costco?--really?  Yesterday, they dissected whether Mitt really had cooked pancakes previously...really?  Is THIS what election years is about...shirts and pancakes...?   THIS is not a political post...far from it.   

But drinking coffee...Oh my, I couldn't do it.  Even when my Grandma AnnaBelle would put cream and sugar in it...or my sister-in-law would put cream, sugar and flavoring in it--thanks, Tammy! 

NO, I couldn't do it...But when I became a part of our church's staff, actually being at the church three mornings a week...PC taught me to 'just drink it black'...and it was AMAZING!

When I first began calling meetings for my women's ministry team, I remember I put on one reminder card, 'come to my house, we'll have coffee!'

In my MIND, I thought of our meeting as a sort of caucus to share ideas, a time to sit around a table and really talk about issues, plans and prayers that we had as a team...much like the sacred events that I had attended with my dad and his friends.  The really hilarious thing about me writing that on a post card is this:  I didn't even own a coffee maker at that point!  No, I didn't even consider serving coffee...so then it became a joke, 'driver through, get your coffee, then come to my house'!!!  Yep, that's me:  the planner!

But today, I have a coffee maker, and I have pretty decent coffee.  Mallory and I are the only ones that live here that enjoy coffee--she likes creamer in hers and I still like mine  )--thanks, PC!)'just plain black.'   I love the warmness of the cup in my hands, the comforting aroma as it is brewing and I love the rich taste!

And, yes, I love to sit with friends and 'have coffee'--to put order to the world--at least the world I can touch...

In reality, that's what 'going to drink coffee' did for my dad, in some way it probably helped him make sense of 'his world' as a friend, a trucker and a person.   I used to sit for most of the morning, while my mother-in-law drank coffee...and discuss our world, putting it in order!  I would sip hot tea, or drink her iced tea...It only would have been better if I would have enjoyed coffee then, like I do now!  OK, I've had two cups, blog is finished--time to get on with the day...

Just know, if we could have coffee...we'd discuss OUR world....Be blessed today...Be a blessing today!!!!!