On the Restorative Powers of Tea

Deimyts says:

There is something almost magical about a steaming cup of tea; it is merely herbs steeped in hot water, but it is capable of calming and relaxing me like no other drink. It has to be hot tea, of course. Iced tea wouldn't do, and hot coffee is no substitute either. Aside from any chemical effect the drinks may have, the associations I hold with them are different. I've taken to having a cup of tea most days after I get home from classes. Sitting at the table with the warm ceramic mug in my hand is the thing which makes me feel most like I am actually at home. It puts a symbolic endpoint on the day, and gives my mind a chance to unwind itself from the pressures of school. Even if, as on most days, the ending is false and I have to continue working on homework, it does not matter. It allows me to approach any work that I may have to complete with a clearer head instead of rushing frantically about to get it done. It's ten or fifteen minutes where I do very little but enjoy the physical sensation of drinking tea: watching the steam rising from the cup, creating mesmerizing whorls in the air, the heat on my face as I bring the cup to my lips, and the bright flash as the scalding liquid passes through my mouth and down my throat to fill my gut with a diffuse warmth. Recently I've had a preference for jasmine tea, but really any kind will do, as long as it's warm. But in the end, I guess it's not as much about the tea as it is about just taking a brief moment to yourself in which you have no obligations, even though they may come crashing back down on you as soon as you take the last sip.