Coffee-Cancer-Connections

I just love coffee! Although, I am not a true coffee drinker because I must have cream added with a sweetener. A true coffee drinker has it black with nothing in it. Yuk! I was introduced to coffee drinking by my aunt. My aunt (who is the eldest) and my dad were born on the same day but 10 years apart. She would drink her coffee with three sugars and two teaspoons of cream in a cup and saucer. Then she would pour some of the coffee from the cup into the saucer and drink from the saucer. She would say, "this coffee is really good”. One day when I visited my aunt, I asked her if I could taste what she was drinking. I was about 10 or 11 years old. Initially, she said “no”. But I persisted in asking until she gave me a sip. After the sip, I never thought about drinking coffee again until I started college.

Although, my parents drank coffee daily. When I became older, I started drinking coffee in the morning as a way to get me going for the day. Paul Ballardin, the founder of Coffee Shrine stated “Coffee is widely known as the world’s most popular beverage for kick starting the day and many people typically start their morning with a ritual cup of freshly extracted coffee”. Later on, for me coffee would facilitate conversations that I would have with my parents usually in the early evening right after dinner. We would brew a pot of coffee and talk about everything-such as their grandchildren, work, church-it did not matter. Those were good times! It was weird, for most people caffeine would stimulate them and cause an inability to sleep. However, my mom and I, could drink coffee at night and it would put us right to sleep. On the other hand, dad was like the majority of the people.

When mom unexpectedly died two years ago, my dad and I continued the tradition of conversation over a cup of coffee in the evenings. We pondered the shock of losing her so fast, especially when she was doing so well from the heart attacks she experienced prior. Two months after her death, dad was diagnosed with a rare sinus cancer. His illness catapulted into weekly chemotherapy, radiation, rehabilitation and hospital stays until his transition. Our family had no time to grieve the loss of my mother and now we were faced with another challenge. But that is not all, two weeks after dad’s diagnosis; I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Subsequently, I had other personal challenges that I was confronted with at the time related to school and work.

Needless to say, these situations appeared to be bleak for our family. But, I am told that the “eye of the storm” or center is the “calmest place” and the strong tropical cyclones on the outer wall are where the severe weather resides. I believe it was God who kept our family in the “calmest place”. He sent caring friends and family members to visit to say “I am praying for you”, just to sit and talk with us, and to assist wherever they could. For example, when I was at the hospital or the rehabilitation center where my dad resided, at least two or three times a week I would get a visit from my cousin. He would call or text and say, “Have you had anything to eat today? Or do you want some company?” Now here is a young man (early 20s) in school and working who could be “hanging out” with his friends, but chose to come to the hospital or the rehabilitation center to be with his uncle and to see about his cousins. That was special! The conversation would be about anything. His length of stay would be no more than an hour because he would have to return to school or work. But it really meant a lot.

My cousin works at Starbucks. Even after dad passed, I would still get the phone calls or text messages, checking to see if I had lunch or dinner. One day, my cousin brought me a sample of the new Starbucks Via flavored coffee. This is not an instant coffee but a ready-brew coffee. All you add is hot water. My favorite is Cinnamon-Spice. As you know, coffee is a well-known antioxidant and recent studies show that coffee has health benefits not only to brain function and mental alertness. Drinking coffee has positive effects in other lifestyle diseases like Type II Diabetes and is also known to retard the growth of cancer cells. So not only do people find more than enough reasons to enjoy their daily coffee for its great taste , it also provides an enjoyable means of having a positive influence on one’s health.

For that reason, my cousin and I have designated Wednesdays and Thursdays as the time we will have Cinnamon-Spice coffee after work and Zumba class respectively. We talk about our goals, aspirations for the future as well as our past. So, my cousin and I are continuing the tradition of celebrating the memories of two wonderful people that have had a huge impact on our both of our lives-My Parents.

Do you have traditions you like to celebrate? 
Share one of them.