It’s my favorite time of the day. Once I pry myself from bed and make it over to the corner, coffee appears on a little stand next to me. Prepared by my luvvvah, often in matching mugs, this sweet ritual is one that I miss when we are not together.

Often it has arrived before I wake all the way up, the smell enticing me to emerge from the coziness of my covers and meet the day. But I don’t waaant to.

We sit together reading quietly or scanning our phones or asking what is on the agenda for the day. I journal. We talk. It is the kind of time that I want to last and last. No interruptions. No kids. Just us for 20 minutes.

This morning I reached for my mug for that first sip.

How is the coffee holding up? Do we need to buy more?

There is a bit of back story here.

Today is payday. That means the bottom of the barrel has been scraped in many places in the kitchen. I wondered if it was that way with the whole-bean coffee that we usually have stocked and stored.

Steve is the coffee-preparer most of the time. I am out of the coffee supply loop. So this morning I took that first sip and asked, How’s the coffee holding up? Do we need to buy more?

His response made me laugh.

This is an old packet of Folgers that I found in the coffee basket. We are out of coffee. I will have to bring your second cup to school after the bus run.

I am not a coffee snob. Truly, I’m not. But I could tell. Usually there is a bag of backup beans somewhere but not today. I will add it to the list.

Happy Friday, Everyone! That second cup cannot come soon enough. Enjoy your day!