Buying teas and a discovery

The baby crawled across the tea and coffee shop floor. The last time I saw him he still wasn’t able to sit up.

The shop is long with burlap bags of coffee beans one one side, tables on another for those who want to drink their tea and coffee there, and a collection of cups, saucers and teapots to buy.

The owners are the baby’s parents, a young couple. He’s dark and she’s light.

Behind the counter are cans and cans of teas in green metal canisters each labeled.

“Smell this,” the man says. He opens one of the cannisters. The teas are from all over the world or at least the parts that grow tea. He aromas are of well-known teas such as Earl Grey or mixtures with fruits, cinnamon, vanilla. I settle for oolong fancy. He scoops it into a small and narrow red paper bag and seals it with the wire in a gold strip that I can use in the same way someone rolls up a toothpaste tube with those little doohimjigas.

Then I spy it. Mate vert. He opens the canister. I inhale. YES. It is the same type of mate I was served in Damascus at each house I stopped at. Hours of women-conversation over mate came back along with memories of living rooms with high ceilings, the sound of a horse-drawn cart clip-clopping by outside, tales of children and husbands, recipes, hopes fulfilled and not.

To make mate a glass slightly smaller and narrower than a juice glass is filled with the leaves. Cardamom is sprinkled on top. Hot water is poured to the brim. Silver spoons with tiny bowls that hide holes and are really straws are inserted. Let the talk begin.

I was explaining it to my friend and told her I had the spoon/straws bought in the home that I could find the mate. Although she is Anglophone we were speaking French to include the shop owner. She was fine with the description until I got to the word cardamom. We switched to English. She still didn’t understand until I said it was used in Indian cooking.

Between my French accent and the Bostonian accent the word came out Cahhhdahmom. Ah well. She and I will share a glass of mate and stories as soon as I get to the marché to buy that spice however you pronounce it.