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More Than Just a Sip: Accepting Growth One Cup at a Time
Growing up, tea was always this ‘grown-up’ thing for me that kids weren’t supposed to go near. In my culture, there were all sorts of warnings attached to it. I was told that drinking tea would give me heartburn, mess up my sleep, and, in a bizarre twist, even make my skin darker. It’s funny how these ideas, however irrational they may seem now, became so ingrained in my mind. As kids, we don’t question these things — we absorb them, internalize them, and carry them forward, often without realizing how ridiculous some of them are. In hindsight, the idea that drinking tea could darken your skin was steeped in a form of racism that I didn’t fully grasp at the time. The message was clear — darker skin was undesirable, and something as simple as tea could somehow be considered a reason behind it. The absurdity of it now makes me shake my head, but back then, it was one of many reasons I stayed away from tea.
For years, I avoided tea, believing it wasn’t meant for me. Even though everyone around me seemed to enjoy it — family, friends, strangers — it never felt like something I should embrace. I couldn’t fit in. I wasn’t able to relate to people neither make connections. I was this outsider who didn’t know how to appreciate the bliss of a sip of hot tea. It became a habit to say ‘no’ whenever tea was offered, and over time, I barely thought about it…
