$7 Lattes
A few times a week I like to treat myself to an almost $7 oat milk latte. Just typing that sentence makes me want to punch myself in the face. Lord, forgive me. Today was one of those days. Now, I don’t go to Starbucks like a mere peasant. I got to a place that serves good coffee and is so cool and hip that you have never heard of it.
Today as by bearded and tattooed barista was pouring the perfectly steamed and frothy oat milk over organic, fairtrade, hand-sourced, rare, cool, and hip espresso I noticed he was creating a one-of-a-kind piece of what the cool kids call latte art. If you are not familiar with latte art you are better off. But it is when the barista pours the milk in a way that creates an image that you can take a picture of to post on your social media platform of choice to show how cool and hip and talented your barista is. It is all kind of silly.
Once the last bit of perfectly steamed and frothy oat milk had been artfully poured over the organic, fairtrade, hand-sourced, rare, cool, and hip espresso my barista immediately put a lid on my cup, handed it to me with a smile on his face and said, “Have a great day, dude”. Once I stepped away from the counter I removed the lid and saw a perfectly formed image of a flower staring back at me.
If I hadn’t been watching him from a distance, I would have never known that he had poured the perfectly steamed and frothy oat milk in a way that created a flower. My bearded and tattooed barista didn’t ask me to check out his artistic feat. He didn’t wink at me as he handed me my $7 drink hinting at me to check out what he had done. He did all of this unseen, hidden from me.
It made me wonder why he took the time to create something I would have most likely never seen or enjoyed if I had not been peering at him from around the corner. His secret act of beauty was refreshing to my soul. We live in an age where everyone feels like they have to publicize every good act they do on social media. We live in an age where if you didn’t post it, did it really happen?
I have no idea why my barista created a beautiful oat milk latte flower only to cover it up with a cheap plastic lid. But I was blessed by it. His little secret act of beauty made my day better and even almost justified my $7 latte.
Jesus said don’t let your left know what your right hand is doing when taking care of the poor. I think that the same principle can be applied to all of life. What if we just did the good and beautiful thing because it’s the right thing to do, not because of the number of clicks and likes we may receive? What if we did more things in secret, trusting that the Lord can and will use them to bless people in ways we may never know about?
So, Mr. Bearded and Tattooed Barista, thank you for being committed to your craft. You didn’t know it, but God spoke to me today through your outrageously priced cup of coffee. I’ll see you next week.
Grace and peace ‘til we rise in glory.
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