A Zen Celebration

Aloha,

Today I was invited to attend a Japanese Tea Ceremony, the first of the New Year. The day was spectacular, calm and clear..with a North Shore swell lighting up the coast.

My friend from Japan, Reiku invited me to the Zen Temple in Paia to celebrate the first tea ceremony of the year.

The Japanese Tea Ceremony is a ritual of preparing tea for guests. It is very specific, quiet and traditional.

They served tasty little sweets made from bean paste. The tea is Matcha, a thick green tea that is prepared with a bamboo whisk. I like the taste of green tea, in fact, I drnk green tea most every day. This drink was frothy, almost like green soup instead of tea, but quite ono. (delicious)

It was a sweet stop, a time to reflect on the beauty of simple pleasures, in my rather busy, and very full days .

Here's to taking time out to be good to ourselves.