slow living – Page 2

My friend Sahar is a cardamom tea connoisseur. Milky and minty with a bold cardamom profile, her morning sips are robust and comforting.

On a recent visit to her home in Sydney, I studied her technique through my bleary morning fog. Her cardamom teabags are an easy reach from the electric kettle. As the water comes to a boil, she places one or two teabags in her favorite mug. She pulls fresh mint and milk from the refrigerator. She places a small container of cardamom pods on the counter.

When the water reaches a rolling boil, Sahar pours it into her mug, leaving room for milk. She brews a strong cardamom tea, sometimes boosting the flavor by dropping a cardamom pod in the mug. She pinches three or four mint leaves from a branch and slips them into the mug. The tea steeps for several minutes. Before drinking, she adds a splash of milk.

I was thrilled by her cardamom tea ritual, and she sent me home with cardamom teabags and loose tea. Sahar shared Wagh Bakri, Ahmad, and Premier’s Cardamom Tea. I have enjoyed preparing all of these teas à la Sahar. When I make “her” cardamom tea, my mind drifts back to her warm welcome and gentle spirit.

I have made a small adjustment to Sahar’s morning cardamom tea, adding about ½ teaspoon honey to each serving. Sometimes I zap the milk in the microwave for 15 seconds before adding it to the tea. I have also used her method to prepare Masala Chai, a symphony of black tea ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, black and white pepper, clove, and nutmeg. I find the fresh mint to be a lovely addition. This fall, I plan to work up a caffeine-free Sahar tea with this Chai Rooibos Caffeine-Free Infusion.

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<img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-768" src="https://www.creativesanctuary.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/collioure-succulents-water-300x300.jpg" alt="Collioure Succulents Water" width="300" height="300" /> Life is lush in this Mediterranean village. Located in the south of France mere miles from Spain, Catalan culture pervades Collioure. Tapas, espadrilles, sunshiny wine… People glide between French, Spanish, and Catalan. Vivacious and expressive, they draw me in.

I initially came to Collioure to spend a few days on the water. I discovered the light that moved Matisse, making way for Fauvism. I ate fresh, briny anchovies. I watched the sun rise over the medieval lighthouse-church sitting at the edge of the water. This bright village of 3,000 gave me both solitude and company. I made friends at every turn—at the hotel reception, walking along the jagged inlets, sipping Banyuls wine at a waterside café.

I also experienced the grace of stillness. In “Song of the Reed,” mystic poet Rumi counsels,

Stay where you are
inside such a pure, hollow note

I practiced inhabiting that hollowness. Allowing my mind to settle beneath the buzz of the village, I connected to the minute elements of its landscape. From that still, internal space, my attention moved to the generous succulents that dot the village, to the smooth, flat stones that make up the beach, and to the laundry artfully hung outside the windows of pink, yellow, and blue homes. Inside my hollow note, the surrounding hills and massive château lost their grandeur. The vividness of Collioure made its way to me through the secrets hidden within the notes of overlapping voices and juxtaposed colors.

Inspiration

Rumi’s “Song of the Reed”