Magic hands

As I passed the local Starbucks after dropping my daughter off at school this morning I felt a craving for iced coffee. The urge was understandable - it's humid and a little sad out today, so a cold treat sounded just right. It occurred to me that home was only two blocks away - and I had everything I needed to make it there... But somehow the thought of making my own wasn't as appealing, and I wondered why.

I have a sister who goes to Starbucks every day for her coffee. She doesn't just pick it up on her way somewhere - often she'll bring it home and drink it there... I've considered the possibility that there might be some sort of secret addictive ingredient in Starbucks' products, but it's also possible that my sister is just extremely particular about what she wants.

Selling coffee is big business because a lot of people want to go out for it. Not only for the social aspect of 'having coffee' with a friend, or because there isn't any at home - but simply because that's what they want... And I have a theory as to why this may be.

I would always prefer to eat one of my mom's salads than one I've made myself - and that's not just me being lazy. For some reason food made by someone else always tastes better to me. There's something about having someone prepare food for you that is nourishing in itself - something about the care that goes into the preparation - care that quite literally 'goes into' you when you eat the food... Maybe that's part of what people are looking for without even knowing it when they purchase coffee. Maybe it feels special because someone made it for them.

I remember when I used to ask my godmother why the food she made was always so tasty she'd say that there was magic in her hands. She was only joking, but I think she was probably right...


*photo by Euson