Tea conversions and lights on the road

The churches in France (and most of Europe) are old and beautiful. And yet, they remain empty most of the time.

My first random thought was such a place would allow for a very inspirational tea experience!... It would be a celebration of life and beauty.

Second, I thought the empty churches would benefit from the strategy of many sports coaches: the best defense is offense. New members are like fresh blood for an organism. They bring their enthousiasm, curiosity and a necessary renewal of old practices.

During my European trip, I made tea for friends and family, for tea fans and complete novices. The Cha Xi with my readers in Paris was great. Our common tea passion let us quickly connect. (That was easy, since I was 'preaching to the choir').

The bigger challenge was brewing for people with little or no real tea experience. Is it possible to 'convert' them to tea?

I still remember being laughed at, some years ago, as I was showing a gongfu cha preparation. Several readers and tea bloggers have reported similar experiences. But fear of ridicule shouldn't stop us to spread tea happiness. (Also, more fans of quality teas mean more incentives for farmers to produce better teas).

It's a special satisfaction when my tea helps a complete beginner catch interest. Here is some advice that worked well:

- Timing and mood are essential. Make the demonstration when everybody has time and wants tea (or a warm beverage at least). If your friends have only 10 minutes to spare or have just finished drinking a (large) cup of latte, don't even try!

- The gradual approach: use your tea skills to improve the current tea your friend is brewing. The older we get the more difficult it's to change our habits. So, instead of teaching a whole new way of brewing, try to change the one thing that will produce the most dramatic improvement. For my parents, I switched from tap to mineral water. For my grand father, I upgrade his scented red leaves to high quality (unscented) red tea. This is also why I like high quality OB and red teas in such occasions, because people are already somewhat familiar with their fragrances.

- The 'miracles': try to leave an impression and generate curiosity by performing some tricks. For instance, show how a layer of dry high mountain Oolong will end up filling the whole space of your vessel. Show how big and whole the Oolong leaves become. Or use many leaves and keep on brewing them quickly many times ; it will seem as if they could go on forever. Or choose one of your best teas so that it will taste so much better than regular tea...

The coolest 'miracle' for me -the one that got me interested- is to have 2 people brew the same tea with the same water and feel that it tastes (and smells) different. If your tea tastes much better than the novice's, he may want to learn where your 'powers' come from!

Converting friends to tea isn't easy, but the joy of sharing is worth the try. I hope nobody minds the religious vocabulary I used in this article. Tea isn't a religion. It doesn't tell us The Meaning of Life. It's simply about turning a basic need, thirst, into a pleasure for all our senses. Tea is happiness:

Cha Dao, the way of tea, can be dark and difficult to find when we're alone. It's much easier to find your way when the light is shining. Teaparker has guided my way for the last 6 years. My blog may have helped some of you. And, maybe, it's now time for you to shine some light around you...
Sharing experience: This September, I propose that you share your 'conversion' attempts with us. What worked? What didn't? How did you feel as a teacher?... As usual, I will find ways to 'reward' the best accounts (and the most 'conversions'!). (Either send me an e-mail or post a comment).

Note: all these pictures were taken on the same day! Coincidence (or fate?) made them connect so neatly for this article. Maybe He's a tea drinker too!???

PS: Un lecteur parisien me dit ne pas trouver de passionnés dans son entourage. Il aimerait faire du thé avec des amateurs expérimentés afin de progresser. S'il y a des intéressés, faites-le moi savoir par e-mail.