by Steve Sheppard –
The Saanich Peninsula is no stranger to retirees; they represent the largest demographic in the picturesque area and every day local coffee houses are filled with lively banter and stories of life experience. As a former barista, I’ve had the pleasure of serving many retirees, and my multitude of discussions with them are proof that so much awaits people after age 65 if you set your mind to it.
Until a few years ago, the magic age in Canada for retirement was 65, and it’s fitting that this, Volume 65 of “Smell The Coffee,” will be my last in Seaside Magazine. I would like to thank Sue, Deborah and Allison at Seaside for the opportunity to share my passion for locally roasted coffee. My coffee journeys (and sailing) are taking me to Central America and I am excited about the possibilities that lie ahead.
Being an avid lover of coffee, I will always be intrigued by how our simple daily cup has woven itself throughout our society and weathered a number of proverbial storms through time: prohibition, drought, financial meltdowns, war and greed. I think coffee has endured due to the single most important element in our society: friendship. More friendships are born over a cup of coffee than any beverage worldwide, and it has become a daily ceremony which is different for each of us.
In a nostalgic moment I was looking through my archives and realized we’ve covered a lot of territory! During the past six years we’ve talked about: coffee and hydration, how coffee impacts teenagers, green coffee and the terroir, the negative environmental impacts of the K-Cup, coffee and its similarity to wine, famous people and their coffee habits, cowboy coffee, and coffee and breast cancer. We’ve even talked about coffee, sex and politics, and this past summer touched on the newest up-and-coming trends: cold draught coffee and cask-conditioned coffee. My all-time favourite column was “The Music of Coffee” in June of 2012. Great music and coffee go hand-in-hand and a large majority of people enjoy both together.
Reflecting on what coffee has endured and comparing it with the stories I’ve heard from retirees in our community, they have much in common. Many retirees have experienced war, the Great Depression and hard times. Maybe we need to give more credit to the retirees in our community and listen a little more intently when they speak, because they do so from experience.
In so saying I bid adieu, quoting the immortal words from Bob Dylan’s song One More Cup of Coffee: “one more cup of coffee for the road, one more cup of coffee before I go, to the valley below” … Steve out.
