I had my first cup of coffee at the age of five. I know, it sounds shocking but it’s true. Every night after dinner I convinced my parents to give me a cup of coffee with milk and two teaspoons of sugar. They never thought about whether or not it was healthy and to be honest, I can tell you that it got me all jacked up. I’d offer to the do the dishes, lift, organize, scrub…anything….until the glow wore off. I looked forward to it very night. I’d put the cup to my lips knowing what was coming. It was euphoric. The warm malty tasting beverage would slip down the back of my throat and I could feel it penetrating me on a cellular level all the way down to my stomach. It took mere seconds to feel the effects. This wasn’t some craft bean….it was instant Maxwell House. The thought of it grosses me out when I think about it. I am fond of saying I’ve been drinking coffee since I was five… but not anymore. Fifteen days ago, I gave it up. I’d been feeling “not right”. I couldn’t actually put my finger on what was going on, but I’d cleaned up my body and my diet so much in the last year, I think it was the last toxin to go. It wasn’t just coffee…it was all caffeine that I gave the boot to. The first few days were intensely difficult. The headache I had was over the top. I had a metallic taste on my tongue and I could only focus on what was in front of me…literally. After day three I was doing OK. I’d switched to herbal teas, warm water and lemon and even some local hot cider. Having a cold morning drink wasn’t cutting it. The beverage had to be hot, that’s all I knew. I missed my coffee though. Not the caffeine… I was feeling pretty good…focused. I was missing that malty lover of mine.

I went on one of my shopping day trips with my daughter around the eight day mark. I’d always gotten a cappuccino at the Nordstrom Café before I headed home. Before we walked thru the door, I looked at my daughter and said, “Oh no, now what am I going to do?” She was sensitive to my angst and said, maybe a hot chocolate. I told her it had caffeine so she said, “What about a decaf?” I nearly fell over. First of all she was ten. Had no one ever told her how repulsive decaf was? I almost barked back at her but for some reason my shoulders shrugged. “I don’t know”, I said. “Decaf usually tastes like shit” Yes, I say shit in front of my ten year old. I walked up to the counter and said, “How bad are your decaf beans.?“ The guy behind the counter said, “They’re pretty good. We sell more of these than our caffeinateIMG_0803.JPGd beans.” I decided I’d get a small cappuccino in case it did taste like shit, I wouldn’t be crying about throwing it out. They handed it to me and I was a little scared to drink it. I took a sip and it was almost like the first cup I’d ever had….but within seconds…nothing happened! No crazy jacked up feeling, no nothing. But, I was happy. My smile was evident.
We left the café and started to drive home and I saw a Whole Foods. I decided to go in real quick to see if they had a good decaf bean. It didn’t take long for the obsession to return. I found a Stauf’s (local Columbus, Ohio roaster) Kaldi blend. I had no idea how it tasted but I know Stauf’s has the best beans. This decaf blend is a decaffeinated version of their classic house blend. Half is roasted dark to bring out bold and bittersweet flavors, while the other half is roasted light to emphasize sweetness and acidity. Can I tell the difference? Sure….is it disgusting ? I wouldn’t be drinking it if it were. I really liked the taste and that was what I always liked about coffee. My old friend had returned just wearing a different face.

To add to this story, four months ago, I kicked my sugar habit. All sugars…refined, honey, syrups, agave…you name it. Now, let me say that there is sugar in everything so the way I shop has changed drastically. I tend to stay on the outskirts of my grocery store where everything is fresh. Once you head in to the center aisle’s it’s like entering hell. You cannot trust anything. The sales are usually in the center aisle’s so that’s where they make their money and for the most part it is all processed and full of ingredients that you cannot pronounce. You are pretty safe if you go down your organic aisle if your grocery store has one, but they put sugar in their foods too, but at least you can read the label and understand what’s in there. I am a label reader. I used to read what the carbs were. Now, I read if it has sugar in it or not. I put most things back on the shelf and just buy fresh. It was a little depressing at first but that was a short lived emotion when I saw how much better I felt. Once you cut the sugar, you no longer crave it. Sounds easy because it actually was.

My decision to give up sugar was for detoxification reasons but the long term, noticeable benefits were just too good to ever go back. I do have sugar in foods that have it naturally occurring like fruits and root vegetables and I am sure that some of the restaurants that I’ve eaten at in the last four months had sugar in one of their sauces. I always ask but you just never know. I know that I haven’t put any sugar on or in my food and so far that’s good enough because like I said, the changes in me are profound. My ability to focus is off the charts. I could always get stuff done but now I can get stuff done without doing ten things at once. My skin is different, my mood is different and my stress…well…I have none.

Saying goodbye to old friends is hard. You think, your world will change and it does. But change is good. Change is where we learn about what we are made of and what’s left in its wake is really awesome. I’ve gone through a lot of changes in my life and every change was good for me. Even when it seemed tough, I was learning and growing as the person I was meant to be. I’ve heard it said that attitude is altitude… going to a higher level of understanding, growth, flexibility, values, strength and compassion. I remember my old friends coffee and sugar, we were partners in crime and now we can inspire the lives of those around us. It was a friendship I won’t soon forget.