Even Bad Coffee Is Good Coffee in 2020
By: Naf Beltran
Tags: Hope, Photography, Coffee, Life, Gratitude

Even Bad Coffee Is Good Coffee in 2020

How a trip to a coffee shop turns out to be a lesson of hope and gratitude

Photo by Jake Young on Unsplash

This isn't a story about, where to buy the best coffee. It is a story of hope and gratitude as we approach the end of 2020.

I decided to walk. I walked past Starbucks, and it looked different. There was a short queue of people waiting to get inside. But I can see, it isn’t full as it usually was.

From afar, I could see social distancing is being observed, with empty seats, and tables are arranged to seat only one.

I am thinking, it would be nice to have a freshly brewed cup of coffee, to be inside a coffee shop and go people watching.

It would also be nice to say hello, to the barista I got to know a few times whenever I have coffee. Will he even be there?

It has been months, to be precise 8 months, since I had coffee inside a coffee shop.

Coffee has always been my drink of choice. It has served me well in the past. For me, it is one of my simple pleasures.

I have been living a minimalist life, not that I have lived my life in the past, buying expensive things. I have cut down on things I can’t afford and don’t add value to my life.

But coffee remains a stable part of my life. I am very lucky to have friends who enjoy coffee as much as I do. Looking back, every meal with friends ends up with coffee. It is always the perfect ending.

Even when I was traveling around the world as a photographer, I would have coffee in a local cafe. It wasn’t to collect memorabilia but to collect memories. It was what I did when I first arrived in Anchorage, Alaska, and when I was in Marseille, France.

I have coffee at the airport while reading a book, listening to music, or waiting for a flight.

I was having coffee while waiting for a cousin in New York. It was my first time in New York, and it was my first time to see my cousin in 10 years.

I was having coffee when my ex-boyfriend knocked on my cabin door, to say goodbye.

Coffee — A witness to some of the best and worst times of my life.

The good thing about coffee is, it is silent. It listens to the conversation in your head. It warms your body when it is cold. It doesn’t think of you any less, whatever you are going through.

This year, coffee is my companion. Without being able to be with family and friends, there are days even as I write this, it’s only me and coffee.

When fear crosses my mind, or when little food is on the table, coffee is all I have.

In the past, as long I have good coffee, I feel I am Ok. This year, there were times when I would even drink instant coffee. It feels I hit rock bottom, whenever I can’t even have brewed coffee.

Again, the simple joys of coffee include the aroma that fills the air. But this year, instant coffee is better than nothing.

Coffee runs deep in the family. I would prepare a cup for my parents, and there was a time when I wasn’t talking to my Dad, that when I saw him next, no words were exchanged between us, all I needed to do was, make him a freshly brewed coffee and we were back to like it never happened.

This year, when I rediscovered my love for writing, it was coffee that got me going, a burst of creativity will always follow a cup of coffee.

In my folly, I did a 7-day experiment of not having coffee and it didn't end well. Yet, the very next day, when I had coffee, none of it mattered. Not to me, nor the cup.

Coffee doesn't judge me.

It was getting dark, when I finally decided to go inside Starbucks, just to see, just to feel.

I was in line waiting for my turn, there was a barista at the door, who would welcome you in.

I started a conversation, I dont remember seeing her in the past, but I asked how is she.

As always, being in a coffee shop is more than getting your coffee. There is always a conversation waiting to happen.

I didn’t ask her about the barista I am looking for. A feeling of regret come rushing inside me.

When it was my turn, I ordered the usual, a grande cappuccino. I didn’t see him, the barista I wish would be there to prepare my cup.

After I got my coffee, there is nowhere to sit, a Starbucks coffee on the go isn't exactly my idea of being in a coffee shop.

I miss sitting down, catch the conversations around me, I have listened to the good and the bad, both happy and sad, everything happens inside a coffee shop.

I decided to walk and I found a bench, where I can drink my coffee. It feels odd, to be drinking coffee outside. But it gave me a different perspective on coffee. I am not confined to a small space like what a coffee shop could make you feel. There were more people to see and watch. I was outside breathing air.

As I look around, life is slowly moving forward, because life has to.

I feel lucky to be sipping a nice hot coffee, I feel grateful for the experience. I can’t help, but say a few words to the cup of coffee.

I said, thank you.

There was more to think about when I got home, the taste of coffee long gone.

I look back not only at what happened this year. but memories came in flashes, without trying, I saw the times coffee was with me, it was the only thing constant in my life. Even when people come and go, some by their choice, some were mine.

What is true, is that like coffee, I am the same. A cup that can be full, or empty. Like coffee, I can be appreciated and taken for granted. With some decisions, a small mistake can leave a bitter taste. I am simple and can be complicated. Like coffee, I can be hot or cold.

“Even bad coffee is better than no coffee at all.” — David Lynch

It is true, for many it has been a bad year, I had my share of both the good and bad this year.