COFFEE IS MORE THAN CONNECTION IS CONTACT.
Coffee is more than connection, it’s contact. Before becoming a beverage it’s a flower, a fruit and a bean. It’s life that encompasses other lives.
It sounds too poetic, but the development of this culture is poetry itself:
“Flowering is the most important phase of coffee, at this time each branch of the plant becomes a jasmine-scented white bouquet. The flowers bloom in one morning, grouped in a small bundle ... ”From the flower comes the bean.
Every year on October 1st, the world gathers to celebrate coffee, but for us coffee lovers, every day is its day. The act of drinking coffee is so natural - in the sense of tradition - that sometimes we forget that it is a ritual that is part of human nature, and carries different contexts and meanings since its discovery.
“The history of coffee began in the nineth century, it originates from the highlands of Ethiopia (possibly with crops in Sudan and Kenya) and it has spread to the world through Egypt and Europe.”
Coffee in Palestine 1900. Stereoscopic image of Keystone View Company.
Note that we live around tables, and coffee is present when you wake up, when you work - the warriors' drink - it precedes meetings, make business works, comforts on cold days, wakes up on hot days, it is also a grandma's treat, a laugh among friends, a long hug, and more than that, it's talk and it's silence.
Thus, coffee is art, history and culture. Awakening pleasure, whether in a porcelain cup or an American cup, the secret is love, ‘cause we all know that magic lies in simple things in life.
Allegory of Peace and Happiness Of The State, by Nina Beier
We take great pride in being part of the coffee chain, and we want more and more tighten ties - from producers to consumers - and for all relationships around this plant to be balanced and happy.
ps. Yes, it's not just us humans who enjoy this drink, bees are also addicted to coffee. Pure honey, isn't it ?! LOL...
Photos by Sam, from ZAB CAFE.