Thursday, November 30, 2023

1 day 1 tea: Last day of the November challenge

Day 30: Heavily roasted Oolong from Dong Ding, 1979. (This aged Oolong isn't available in my selection anymore).

My November challenge comes to an end and I've made it: I have posted 30 days in a row! That's as much as in the 5 preceding months combined!! Thanks to this month, the number of posts this year is already guaranteed to increase dramatically compared to previous years. It might even reach 100 posts. Last time it did was in 2016. And back then, I wasn't producing video tea classes!

I hope that this November challenge will provide some insight into my daily brewing practice and maybe give you some inspiration for your own. I think there are interesting lessons to be drawn from this challenge. 
First, it's not a coincidence that the challenge would take place in November. Autumn can feel quite depressing and sad for many people. The days are getting shorter, we get less sunshine, less warmth. This year's news has been particularly sad and oppressing since October 7th. If you don't have a job that requires your attention, it's easy to drift towards dark thoughts. A difficult but doable challenge helps you to focus your mind on a positive project that depends on you to complete. It requires action and leads to daily accomplishments. Indeed, you sleep better if you have completed the task you have given yourself. 
And in the case of making a daily Chaxi, the rewards are almost infinite:
- creative with the setup,
- artistic with the pictures,
- peaceful with the quiet time,
- delicious with the taste of the tea,
- emotional with the way the tea echoes your inner feelings,
- harmonious with the way the tea accessories are well chosen for the tea.
- personal with the memories the tea brings about.
etc...
You might also have noticed that I was able to alternate the teas I brewed and just repeated the Da Yu Ling 104K. I brewed the fresh high mountain Oolongs in the first part of November, when the weather was still hot and progressively turned to darker teas. Choosing the right tea at the right time has a lot to do with catching the mood of the moment. And our mood changes all the time! That's why I didn't plan these teas in advance, but selected them on the spot. 
Thanks again for reading my tea blog! I wish this challenge provided hope, beauty and inspiration for you as well!
Let me also remind you that on top of my regular promotions and free sample and free shipping (above 100 USD) and free ebooks (above 60 USD), I'm giving away Chabu, cups, a jazz CD by Oded Tzur, a white tea cake and Le Livre du thé. The highest 2 orders get one of these gifts every day. The others get an additional surprise tea sample. Everybody who places an order receives a gift until December 22:

No comments: