Your morning cup, no matter how you take it, is likely connected to hundreds, if not thousands, of people spread across the world. The shear logistics needed to get you that drink is mind boggling enough. Factor in that most coffee is grown in the absolute remote areas of the planet and farmed by villagers with little to no other connection outside their plots. Growing, processing, shipping, roasting, and brewing it requires a massive network of cooperating peoples. That in particular is something I’ve been thinking about deeply these days.

Keeping the week’s theme, coffee is also fermented. Some processes require an imprecise precision for when you stop the fermentation. Too long and it’s unusable, too short and you lose its potential. Each harvest is different, too, so knowing that moment is more art than practical science, and the reward for doing it well is magical.

There is no “me” without coffee – it is too deeply woven into the fabric of who I am and my experiences. To pull that thread out of the Marshall tapestry would surely mean unraveling the rest of me.

While I’m not in it now, I’ve been in and around the coffee industry for 15 years. I’ve managed cafes, consulted for others, worked for a roaster, consulted for others, even consulted for breweries making coffee beers ☕🍺. Yet it still fascinates me: the nuance, depth, history, and breadth of ritual practiced globally is matched by few…most religions don’t have as many devotees as the daily cuppa.

Maybe tomorrow morning sip your coffee a bit slower. Enjoy this agricultural, logistical, mystical marvel a little more than usual.

What else have you to do?