I’m sitting in a local coffee shop catching up on some work on a Saturday morning. I came here because I like the atmosphere and the coffee and thought they’d have good air-conditioning. Unfortunately, the A/C seems to be on the blink, but the coffee is delicious, the music is decent, and I have a nice view from large windows. The coffee is probably the most important thing to me right now, though.
I have found that, during stressful times, it’s really helpful to take time to zero in on and fully experience small, everyday things. For me, one of those things is good coffee. For quite a long time, I got the same kind of coffee for our espresso machine. It was very tasty, but I noticed that as major life stressors started to pile up, I began to crave something a little different. I explored coffee beans from different places in the world, discovering my absolute favourite Indonesian beans, which are sadly only available during certain seasons. My current seasonal favourite beans are from Ecuador (a place where my younger son wants to visit as he’s become obsessed with the Amazon).
It can also help to combine mindfulness of small things with behaviour that fits your values. We call this “sticking to values” in DBT, and it’s part of the interpersonal effectiveness and emotion regulation skills. Having watched a documentary on coffee several years ago and seeing how poor practices can harm local farmers/economies, I try to only buy fair or direct-trade coffee beans. I’ve found that they’re more expensive but worth the price in terms of both taste and the satisfaction of doing something that fits my values.
Right now, I’m looking out the window at a lovely, large golden retriever who is resting peacefully underneath a patio table. My Columbian coffee (very interesting, with light, fruity notes) is almost done, and I’m about out of gas in terms of my ability to get any more work done. I feel satisfied and ready to head home. ~Alexander L. Chapman, Ph.D., R.Psych.