Is Coffee considered an "Essential?"

There are so many interesting perspectives on the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic happening right now. One thing is for sure, when the regular patterns of life disappear, as we are all experiencing presently, we tend to feel a bit weird, vulnerable, open and even naked.

This daily life shake up, can feel good (witnessing moments of kindness, freedom, openness, bliss and clarity) and sometimes scary (disorientation, purposelessness, feeling lost, anxious, hopeless). However I am a firm believer that dropping the patterns and embracing change, even for a short while, will lead to an emergence of new growth and new ways of being. This is happening for the world at large and also for us as individuals presently.

Don't get me wrong I am grateful that "coffee" is a survivor of our regular patterns, during COVID-19. Let's face it, most of us simply can't do without it. A morning or daily ritual that continues to be valued whether working from home, in the workplace, schools, hospitals or visiting your local cafe for many coffee is still seen as "essential" in our life during this unprecendented time. Not just essential, almost indispensable. Thank goodness for coffee, I hear you all rejoicing!

It is interesting we appreciate "coffee" but do we really appreciate the people who play an integral role in the whole coffee chain, from farming to processing to trading to roasting to brewing to tasting. Valuing all of the "team" who touch your "coffee", like the well regarded coffee farmer who has nurtured the coffee cherry for months, the production roasting team who have handcrafted that bean from green to brown with precision, the team of skilled baristas who prepare your coffee and customer service personnel who provide the final touch to your "normal" regular coffee pattern.

I hope COVID -19 will teach us to stop judging those working in hospitality based on their job titles and earnings. They are the ones helping you through this crisis along with grocery store workers, garbage collectors, bus drivers and many other roles, making sure we have the "essentials" to survive on and even risking their health. Honest work is honest work and we should never look down on anyone for the job they have. Everyone in the "team" of coffee is important and matters. Superiority complex is still a thing, I see it weekly, often daily as customers interact with my "team" where some people think that "I'm more valuable than you". It is sad, but it is true. I really don't care for the, I earn more than you attitude, that does not indicate your kindness, your intelligence, your character, or your success.

We should never look down on anyone because they work in hospitality or in coffee or because of the job they have. Everybody matters, infact viewing all equally is the new "essential". This is our opportunity to break the pattern and embrace a new appreciation for each person's work in our society.