My First Beautiful Thing

Cold kitchen, whistling kettle: the water is ready, the ground awaits.

Now for the pour-over: watching steam rise, Chemex fill, and sparkly diamonds dance as the water settles and filters – suspends me every time.

I lift the good, heavy pot from the gleaming chrome and pour.

The warm, puddle-y sound, quiet but lifting, rising in pitch as the mug fills, is dark and swirling.

A splash of cream and voila! At this early hour, 

I've done my first beautiful thing.