Oh, Coffee, How I Love You

A cup of Joe.  Brew. Java. Coffee.  

I occasionally see a meme in which the author states that he or she drinks a lot of water.  Filtered water. Water filtered through coffee grounds. Okay, coffee.  I chuckle every time.

Coffee.  It’s a thing.

I just finished my last cup for the day while pondering my post for this afternoon.  As I tipped it back, I started to think about the impact coffee has on the people who mean the most to me, especially my students, of all people.

With my wife, it’s a daily ritual, a time in which we sit and talk.  

With our adult daughters, it’s an event they’ve grown to enjoy, an element of their relationship with “the parental units.”

On a daily basis, though, it’s a connection with my students.  It’s part of who I am. My shtick, even. I regularly have students whom I barely know (as a STEM coach, I’m in a lot of classrooms) come up to me and ask, “Mr. Gels, where’s your coffee!?”

Coffee lets my students know I care for them.  I regularly tell them how much I love it, even more than 3rd graders (or whatever the grade I’m with).  When I ask if they believe me, my tone tells them to answer no, and I get to tell them they’re right…but, wow, do I love coffee.

Coffee is a connection.  “Mr. Gels, my mom loves coffee, too.”  “Mr. Gels, you’re like my dad; he drinks a lot of coffee.”  It gives me something to talk about with other teachers, as well.

Coffee gives the opportunity for think time–something that I oftentimes struggle with.  I’ll let a question hang while I search the room for my mug. I usually find it as the maximum number of hands are up.

Coffee lets me redirect attention.  If someone embarrasses themselves or a situation gets awkward…I need to find my cup, and I need everyone to look around to help.

You’ll never guess what my most common Christmas/end-of-the year gift is.  Or, maybe you will.

How, some people wonder, do I drink so much coffee?  There are, I confess, two parts to my secret. First, most of the coffee I drink is lukewarm, but not quite cold–it takes a long time for me to drink a cup.  

The other part (shhhh): Decaf.