My Favorite Cup

I found a beautiful blog.  Such amazing photographs.  The blog is belle-blanc and it is hosted by the lovely Mira in Germany.  She wants to see photos of everyone's favorite cup and I thought it was the perfect opportunity to share the story behind mine.

Isn't it pretty?!

During the last school year my children went off to school.  No homeschooling that year.  Because of that I was able to participate in a weekly Bible study with some very special women.  We would meet right after we had dropped our children off at school.  Hot tea was always available along with some yummy breakfast goodie.  I grew up in the south so iced tea was a staple in our home, but hot tea was not something I had even tried to acquire a taste for.  It wasn't long after we had started meeting that I decided to give it a try.  It took awhile, but I began to grow fond of it.  Our hostess always had mugs (or maybe it was cups) available for us, but one week in honor of a book we were reading she asked everyone to bring their favorite cup.  Alas, my husband has an aversion to dishes.  He's a very basic kinda guy when it comes to that kind of thing.  So one year I bought him some plain white Corelle dishes and got rid of all our others and he was happy.  (Later I did sneak in a few green and red plates for fun.)  Anyway, I told everyone that I didn't have a cup to bring, but that I would love seeing theirs.  One of the girls said she would bring me a cup from her relative who was having to get rid of some things due to a move.  Apparently she had a nice teacup collection.  The morning of the teacup sharing she presented me with the one above.  It could not have been more perfect.  It is so me.  The colors are the colors of my home.  My favorite colors. This year I decided to homeschool my children again which I love, but I do miss the ladies and the time we spent together.  Now my cup has even more meaning to me.  When I see it I am reminded of precious friendships, generosity, hospitality, and the attention to detail that was expressed in the choice of teacup for me by a sweet friend.  Now a cup of hot tea is more than just a pleasant thing to drink, it is an experience that warms my heart with fond memories.