It was with a good bit of meaningful pleasure that I was sipping a morning cup of tea while reading this!

Love that description, "a meaning in which you can rest." It reminds me of the power of ritual prayer. One of my favorite psalms is psalm 63, one of the psalms for Morning Prayer. Just to recall the antiphon from the setting by Michael Joncas puts me in that place of meaning and rest. "As morning breaks, I look to you. I look to you O Lord to be my strength this day, as morning breaks, as morning breaks." What a wonderful way to start the day.

ah, yes, coffee. i hated coffee. absolutely. loved the smell. then about 7 or 8 years ago i decided to "take up coffee" for lent. it was kind of a joke. after all, i reasoned, we are told to "do something" for lent, instead of giving it up. so i "learned" to drink coffee. it was also difficult, since i didn't "like" coffee. i learned to drink it black; after all, if i wasn't liking it, why add calories? so now, i like it. i took up a vice that lent, but i don't like hot tea, and gatherings most often serve coffee. i also drink a lot of water. so, yes, that first cup of coffee. ohh la la!

mary lou, just the title of the book sounds awesome. i hope you don't think YOU are an old monk! you are so young, much younger than me in spirit. you are someone i want to be when i grow up!

and i always wish for a group of people with whom to discuss "spiritual stuff". this group is somewhat helping me with that.

mary

I am reminded that conversion takes a lifetime.My morning did not begin with the strength of psalm 63 but there was certainly coffee and the rest of the day to redeem itself . As I said , conversion takes a lifetime. I rise up.I fall down. I rise up with Gods grace.

I's afternoon here and I was feeling a little sleepy which wouldn't be good in my office, thought about a coffeebreak and then thought, no I'll click on MOH and have a little read. I enjoy my morning coffee and breakfast followed by a walk - when i see the beauty of birds, the water or the faces of some of the people I see along the way, I find I am enjoying life and I know too, that's praying.

Thank you for this. It is as if suddenly, playing becomes a sacred moment as well. Maybe Godde loves us at our best when we laugh with delight at the simple joys of life.
Thank you also for showing that the call of the yummy cup of morning coffee is Godde's way of helping us to get up :-)

I am a morning tea drinker. After reading this, I had to make a small pot of expresso, and some frothed milk. I will aim for both pleasure and prayer in the cup!

First comment is this: Sister Mary Lou, if your collection in the next book is anything of the quality of this poem, then I will certainly get a copy. You write "close to the sense" of the word or its meaning -- like Mary Oliver, but in your own style. Love it. My own poems have pretty much pushed out a lot of words too, in order to make simplicity and directness of value. But no way can I match this poem of Old Monk and the coffee.
As to coffee: I'm not sure what gets me up in the morning, but I think it is Katie, our Beagle-JackRussell. Before I have time to get fully conscious, I am up with her. Last summer we would then be out for an early walk. This year my severe back pains prevent that, but I hope soon to remedy those and get Katie out again. But coffee . . . yes! It brews while I shower, and I sip on it all morning. Another great time for coffee though is with my afternoon poetry critique group that meets at a local coffee shop. I love the ambience -- the atmosphere -- the folks there who read, or use their laptops, or write on real paper. There is the sound of the coffee machine making exotic brews -- I simply get "regular" with cream. It's the whole surrounding scene that makes coffee meaningful for me, and I associate poetry with coffee.

Just this morning I was thinking about the place that first cup has in my life. The ritual of making it. Unloading the dishwasher while it brews, lending a bit or order to the space in which I live. Carrying that cup to the desk where I write my first journal entry of the day. Writing and sipping and often settling into an even deeper silence and stillness as I do so. Then I pray the morning office and, here's the thing--sometimes I even continue sipping as I stop to reflect on some line from a psalm or lection that shimmers on this particular day. The morning cup of coffee in conversation with the best of friends.

One of our cats gets me out of bed! He arrives a few minutes before my classical music alarm goes off. He leads me to the bathroom, and then waits for me sitting in the kitchen sink -- yes in the sink. He sits in one side, hangs over the dividing piece so his paws are in the other side. He nudges the faucet and meows, wanting me to turn on the water so he can get a drink! He follows his drink with watching the water as it falls on his head or his paw, batting at it or anything licking it off his paw. Sometimes he knocks the strainer around until the sink begins to fill. Meanwhile we have a little "conversation" about water! As I thought about the coffee and prayer image, I realized that my day begins with play. Smokey's little ritual never fails to bring a smile to my heart. I never thought about it as prayer before. Thank you.

BNeilon, I love your entry because my cat gets me up also. If I don't respond right away, she will use her paw to tap at me. If that fails, she hops on the bureau and pulls the blind away from the window to look out. Times have changed for me. It used to be the thought of coffee that tempted me out of bed. Now, no longer a coffee drinker, it is the morning cup of tea which entices me once the cat prods me to move. The hot cup accompanies my meditation and lectio time. It is my favorite time of day. Thank you, Sister Mary Lou, for having us reflect on those moments.
I too love my group of friends who discuss spiritual "stuff" and do centering prayer together. We are sisters of the spirit and of the heart (not of an order).

For the last 13 years my morning has begun with a double cappuccino that I make at home. I discovered this drink in Italy on my first international trip; traveling was something I never thought I'd be able to do. I spend 30 minutes or so sipping it, reading the days Mass readings, and praising God for all he has done for this lowly maiden. My attitude has changed enormously since I've been doing this joyous routine. It is a prayerful time for me and fills me up with God's grace early in the day. Recently I've discovered that i enjoy waking before dawn and watching the sunrise; something this night owl never dreamed of doing.
Barbara

My black lab gets me up every morning at 6am, she is my alarm clock. I let her out the door and make a pot of coffee first thing. She knows the routine, a treat in my pocket for her and a cup of coffee for me. We sit on the patio together enjoying the early morning watching the sunrise and enjoying the quiet before the day begins. I really think she looks forward to it as much as I do. I have intentionally made this area my sacred space for prayer, and just being still. I am grateful for her, and my cup (pot) of coffee, the sunrise, the trees that surround us and the cool morning breese; wonderful gifts from my loving Abba along the way. I can't think of any better way to start my day.

Morning coffee gets me up early and either into my Angel Room when I'm home, or on the deck when I am at my Cottage by the Sea. Morning coffee with God. I also love to make coffee for my husband and for anyone who might be visiting. No matter how the rest of the day goes, I've started the day with hospitality.

I too hail your "Old Monk" as a kindred spirit. I offer my old prayer, in gratitude for this enterprise of monasteries of the heart.

I consecrate my coffee cup holding it with both hands
So I can look straight down on it
sacrament with small letter s.

The dark liquid holds
my damaged reflection
over the Other’s image in which all are made,

In this moment made sacred with morning’s second cup of bracing Brother Coffee,
I pray Jesus for myself, my need and my promise,
all my family, my friends,
all wayfarers just like us,
our -- each one’s -- need and promise
that God, walking-with-us, knows well.
Amen! [1963]

My attitude has changed enormously since I've been doing this. It is a prayerful time for me and fills me up with God's grace early in the day. Recently I've discovered that i enjoy waking before dawn and watching the sunrise; something this night owl never dreamed of doing.