Zen Coffee... Review

Since my last several posts have been about reviewing Zen books, I thought I'd share a review, written by Cassie Bendel of Espresso Machine News about my own book, Zen Coffee: A Guide to Mindful Meditation.

Author Gloria Chadwick has released a book that seems like an oxymoron: Zen Coffee. But her aim is to teach you how your favorite drink can help calm you down.

Many people approach coffee drinking as a means to an end. They're tired and they need to get the caffeine in the coffee into their system as quickly as possible so that they can wake up, or at least feel like it, and rush on to the next part of the day. This, in my opinion, is why God and the good people at Red Bull invented energy drinks.

While I can't claim that I don't benefit from coffee's energizing purposes, it's always been something different for me. It's meant a chance to slow down. A chance to stop and notice what's around me. So imagine my delighted surprise when I came across the book, Zen Coffee: A Guide
to Mindful Meditation by Gloria Chadwick.

Chadwick's approach to coffee leans more towards seeing the world's #1 beverage as a way to bring a sense of mindfulness and peace to your life rather than something to chug down on your way out the door. However, on her blog, she explains that the book is also for busy people who need the chance to slow down and literally drink in all that life (and coffee) has to offer.

While I haven't read Chadwick's book, her ideas seem quite appealing. According to her, the book can show the average coffee drinker how to utilize their favorite drink and translate those experiences into lowering stress. Chadwick claims you needn't become a Zen expert to experience the calming effects the practice can have on your mind and spirit.

We can all use a little more mindfulness in our daily lives, whether it means committing to a few moments in meditation or simply just taking a second away from the noise of appointments and technology to really stop and see ourselves more clearly. Though I've already found my own approach to coffee as a reason to embrace these moments, I hope to pick up a copy of Chadwick's book and see what a fellow coffee lover thinks about it too.

The book is $9.95 and is available on Amazon.