The Coffee Mugs

As you know I just got back from a week in Florida. We stayed with my parents outside of Orlando Florida and mostly just hung around with the family and friends. We did a few things like celebrate my mom’s birthday with a surprise party; go to Spring Training and Sea world. I also saw a good friend and her kids which was fun too.

But the highlight of the trip for me was getting the old blue mugs.

I just can hear you asking, what do a couple of blue mugs have to do with a spring break trip to Florida?

Well, let me share the story with you.

My mom is the type of mom that all of the kids in the neighborhood loved. She’s the one who would take the neighbors to the emergency room when they cracked open their head or needed stitches. She’s the one that my girl friends would come to talk to when they have boyfriend problems. And she’s the one that people always wanted to have coffee with just to catch up.

As a kid, it was always a special time when my mom would say to one of us, “Let’s go for coffee”. What that REALLY meant was that she would get coffee, and we’d get to spend some alone time with her and get a piece of pie or something sweet. It really made us feel special to get that special treat and attention from her, which wasn’t easy because she was raising 4 kids and was the neighborhood mom!

Coffee is a big tradition in my family. When I go home, my sister will come over and have coffee with us and also my mom will make it every morning and bring it to us wherever we are in the house. In my parents’ house, there have always been these blue Asian type mugs. They’re kind of big and clunky and just the perfect type for a good cup of strong coffee. I always use those mugs whenever possible because it feels like home.

When my mom’s siblings come from Oregon a few years back, everyone commented on the mugs. They all noticed that they were the same type that THEIR mother used when they all grew up. So mom’s brothers and sisters all felt their own mom’s presence because of the mugs. How cool.

My brother Terry is a big “EBay” guy. He buys and sells all the time and is quite a collector of really cool items. I asked Terry to look for some of those mugs for me on the computer and he said he didn’t have to. He already had some.

I could feel the anticipation rising… when he told me that I could have them! He explained that they were wrapped up in his cupboard and that he and his wife never drink coffee or anything out of mugs.

He brought them over later that day and I opened the box. There were two perfectly identical blue Asian coffee mugs just like my moms. And just like my grandmothers. And quite possibly just like my great grandmother’s. There lying before me was a piece of history and of home, and of fond memories.

Now I want my family to grow up with the blue coffee mugs. I want them to feel the comfort of home and of good times. I want them to feel the connection with family around the table and of great conversation. I want them to know that the mugs represent a lot more than just a good cup of coffee. They represent a life of love, family and friends.

They say that the more you become like yourself, the more you revert back to the comfort of your families. Feeling a connection to others seems to be something that everyone wants to achieve. Perhaps part of that longing can be to more simple days; days that were spent without a worry in the world.

How do we get there? Perhaps it’s partly found in items like the mugs. Bringing them into your life can alter your attitude, calm you down and bring a sense of good times and the good life.

You can get all of that from a coffee mug?

You bet! But just don’t forget the coffee!