why do I write about tea

This is part of the Blog Carnival of Association of Tea Bloggers hosted by Jason at Walker Tea Review. Please click the link to see the host's blog for a full list of all participating blogs.

Why do I write about tea? First of all I take poor pictures. What else can I do? :-p Secondly, sometimes I've got crazy thoughts running in my small head and I must squeeze them out by writing :-p

Well, seriously, why do I write about tea?

First of all, I enjoy the communications in tea writing. Writing, especially blog writing, to me is not a one-directional activity. The great joy is in sharing and exchanging ideas. Currently, tea drinkers are still a rather small community. Many tea drinkers are loners in one way or another. These days, most of the time when I drink tea, I use my tiny 100ml vessel, skip the sharing pitcher, and drink alone in a cup as big as my teapot, missing my tea friends. Sometimes reading tea notes from other people on the same tea I drink feels almost like drinking with friends. There are many tea writers/bloggers who inspire me to write, including the list of Tea People on the side column of this blog page, the great writers in Association of Tea Bloggers, and Jackie and Peter at Leafbox Tea, who always write smart and beautiful tea articles. Reading these people makes me feel I am having fun with them in tea drinking and tea writing.

In addition, writing about tea is how I express and practice what I believe. My tea philosophy is, tea is a luxury of time, but not necessarily a luxury of money. One gets the best taste of tea not by spending the most money, but by having the most fun in exploring, learning and appreciation. My personal philosophy is largely influenced by Buddhism and Confucianism. One of the most important Confucianism doctrines says, Wisdom and Compassion come from critical thinking and diligent study on specific subjects (格物致知). I believe there are many different subjects for different people to study, respectively, to get enlightened. To me, tea culture is such a subject.

To me, writing is more personal than business. In writing and tea drinking, I believe having fun is the most important. But meantime, personal writing helps me, as well as other small business tea sellers to build up friendship with tea drinkers. Many of us don't hire professional web designers or market managers to promote our business. But writing is one way to demonstrate we are serious about tea.