Aim for making bread and still reach a tea pot

I have had this conversation with a few friends, about how I aspire to a life that accommodates making bread, particularly sourdough. Anyone who knows about making fresh sourdough understands that this is part of a lifestyle because it requires time, effort, and focus. The sourdough started must be fed, maintained, and used; the actual bread-making requires periods of rising, of kneading, and of baking. To me, evolving in my life to the point at which making bread is something I am ready to do is a sign that I have learned to manage my time, to make time for things that enjoy me, that I am comfortable enough with myself to enter into the varied and challenging relationship that comes with making bread.

I recently discovered there is something between where I've been and that bread maker lifestyle: a tea pot. I finally purchased a tea pot when I returned to Dublin and have since discovered the joy of the time it takes to consume a pot of tea. I don't usually fill the entire pot as it is rather large for one person, but I will often drink more than 1L of tea in a sitting. There is a wonderful feeling inside of me to sit under the warm light in my living room with a book , a blanket, and my tea. And I commit to the time of brewing a pot when I do it; if I don't have time for a leisurely pot of tea, I will brew a cup and get on with my day.

This reminds me of my friend Ben's explanation of why he loves baseball: because it doesn't have a time limit. A similar pleasure can be found in agreeing to attend a game that will last for the afternoon or evening as can be found, for me, in deciding to sit and enjoy a pot of tea.

So I am not quite ready for the bread-making life, but I am definitely enjoying the tea-drinking life.