Valentine's Day is quickly approaching; strangely this holiday is a time of reflection for me. Valentine's Day is commonly associated with romantic love, but I believe it is a time that should highlight all types of love: familial, friend, romantic, self. It is a time to show a little extra appreciation for your loved ones and, importantly, for yourself.

Self-love looks different to everyone. For some, it might mean cooking up an intricate and delicious meal for one. For others, it might mean taking a relaxing bubble bath with a glass of wine. Self-love is about the small, incredibly rewarding activities we can do regularly that make us feel like we are putting ourselves first, even if it is only for a moment. As our lives grow increasingly busy and complex, it is easy to forget to prioritize these kinds of moments. Families or work become the focus of our lives and leave us feeling as if we are a side note in the story of our own lives. But I am hoping this article will remind you of the importance and inspire you to do something for yourself today. What does self-love look like for me? Why, enjoying a cup of tea, of course.

Admittedly I have several cups of tea a day, and by several I mean upwards of 10 cups a day. I think it is fair to say I suffer from insanitea. But there is a reason behind the obsession- my cups of tea are little reminders throughout the day for me to take a breath. During the workweek, it is easy to feel overwhelmed by projects that are missing deadlines, meetings going awry, expectations not being met. But when I'm going into a tizzy from the mounting stress, I grab my mug and latest favorite tea and head over to the cafe.

Usually, there is a coworker or two hanging around the cafe area at any given time during the day; they are probably trying to escape the stresses of work just like I am. Already I feel more at ease just having a casual chat with my coworkers. Typically, I will get asked what flavor of tea I'm trying out now and this is my time to shine- I start going into detail about the flavor and rattling off tea facts. I'm feeling even better as my mind leaves behind everything that was happening at my desk and starts focusing on tea. I feel myself smiling and speaking very expressively and excitedly, signs of true passion. After a few minutes of conversation, my coworkers go back to their desks and I'm left alone in the cafe- time to focus on making my cup of tea.

I turn the kettle on and select the appropriate brew temperature. Then I prepare my tea steeper. I use a full cup steeper because it allows for the leaves to flow freely throughout the entire cup of water, which produces the best brew. I sprinkle a teaspoon of tea into the steeper, place the steeper into my cup, and pour the heated water into my cup. Now, I wait for my tea to brew. You can use a timer, you can guesstimate, but I choose to count down the seconds in my head. This has a bit of a meditative effect and quiets the thoughts zooming around my mind. 3, 2, 1 and my tea is done. After the leaves are discarded and the steeper is cleaned out, I take a deep inhale of my final product. It smells like strawberries and cream, very appropriate for the time of year. I take a tiny sip and let the flavors mingle on my tongue and feel the hot liquid warming up my body. Instinctively my eyes are closed and I'm transported to a serene scene in my head. I take a few more moments to myself. Then, being cognizant of the time, my eyes quickly open and I head back to my desk.

I sit down and start reading through the emails that came in while I was making my tea. I'll read through one, take a sip of tea, read through another email, take another sip of tea. Work suddenly seems so much more manageable with a cup of tea by my side. Soon my cup of tea is empty and it quickly becomes time to have another cup, repeating the process all over again.

The whole process only takes about 5 minutes, but those few minutes really help to clear a frazzled mind and realign my energy. It is the perfect self-love activity because it doesn't take too much time, can be done often and anywhere, and keeps me in the present. No matter where I am or the time, I can easily have a cup of tea to ground myself. I encourage all reading to find more ways to incorporate your self-love activity into daily life. For those of you who haven't discovered your activity yet, try out mindfully enjoying a cup of tea!

*The tea featured in this blog post is our Limited Edition Cupid's Cup, now available for FREE with orders $49+ (available until 2/14/2020 before it slips away back to the rewards page). Glass mug also available on the rewards page.