What’s in Your Coffee?

When you sip that warm, dark roast
while reading a book, or the paper,
or scrolling on your phone, pause
for a moment, put everything down
and stop what you’re doing.

Take a sip.
Shut your eyes.

Can you taste the cool mountain
air, the sun’s buttery beams? Consider
all the hands that pluck beans, shell
beans, wash them, manually sort
them, lay them out to dry under
blue skies and finally roast them.

These hands that hold and nurse
babies, make lunches for their children,
wash clothes, make dinners, read bed
time stories, and each day rise
to bend, stoop, pluck, wash, sort,
dry and roast beans so you
can sip your coffee.

Now, take a moment.
Take a sip.
Shut your eyes.

Enjoy that cup and offer a dash
of gratitude for all the hands
who’ve touched those beans
to make this moment possible.

January 17, 2025, Colombia