Stories from tea shops.

Three strangers meet.

I am in my thirties, and I like to hang out in these tea shops, which has nothing to do with my age. These shops are situated relatively close to one another and have recently gained some popularity. Teenagers and young adults in their early 20s make up the majority of the crowd in these locations. Where do these people come from? Shouldn’t they be in a foreign country already, or in a line outside a government office waiting for a permit to go abroad? It surprises me that there are still so many of them there, smoking and drinking tea. What do they discuss? They presumably talk about which country to go to or what to study. At one point, I overheard some boys discussing while drinking my tea. Knowing that they weren't discussing any of that startled me. Not even video games or anime were on the topic. They merely desired to remain and contribute to this nation. They were even excited to meet each other at that particular cafe every day. What? Why didn’t they want to leave? On top of that, they wanted to do something here. What’s wrong with them? Are these people special or insane? I don't understand. When everyone else was attempting to go, I was puzzled as to why they wished to remain.

I also wonder why I never observe senior citizens socializing with other senior citizens in these tea shops. I don't see these folks commenting about how youngsters are wasting their time at these cafes while smoking cigarettes with their friends. Maybe they regularly forget where the cafe is, or they are too traditional to smoke in public. They most likely aren't forbidden from going there, and even if they went, no one would probably protest. However, in the past, I have told one of those old people rudely to leave the restroom promptly after staying in there for too long. I was very impatient to urinate. My prostate is in good shape, but I have a tendency to be rather uncaring about other people's prostate issues. When it comes to micturating, I become extremely arrogant. Like myself, there may be other self-centered jerks who don't treat these sweet elderly people so well, and that is why they are reluctant to visit.

Photo by Randy Fath on Unsplash

During one of the visits, I noticed an elderly person and a young person seated at a table together. I joined them to have a cup of tea and have a pleasant discussion because I was curious and there were no empty seats available either. They introduced themselves, and I did the same. They were quite cordial. They just so happened to meet on the same day that I did. They had been sitting together for almost fifteen minutes and had nowhere else to sit. I inquired as to what they were discussing. They were discussing how the size of the teacup has shrunk since the old man was in his thirties as they waited for their tea. The younger one was also talking about cup sizes, but different ones. They had their little joke going on. I chuckled too and added that size did not matter to me. I like it without sugar and with adequate milk. I sometimes drink black tea and coffee too. I asked the younger boy how he felt about having strangers sit next to him. He took pleasure in the companionship, just like I did, regardless of how long we had been together. He and the elderly gentleman were both open-minded, which was something I had rarely seen before. Most of the old people I meet, including my parents, are close-minded. I guess that is why he laughed so hard when the younger fellow talked about cup sizes earlier.

After that day, we frequently visited the tea shop. We often discussed how our days went. The old man was a retired policeman. He didn’t do much during his retired days. He had earned his laziness after running behind bus drivers and bike riders all these years. Nevertheless, he had his morning routine of exercising and reading some books. He loved talking to people. The younger fellow was a recent high school graduate and had no clue what to do next. All three of us loved talking, although the subject matter obviously differed. We tried to stay on the same page most of the time. We learned a lot about each other and our experiences. The younger one told us that he did not want to go abroad and instead do something here. The elderly person was surprised because even his grandchildren were not here with him. The boy continued, saying that he had no plans for what to do next and also didn’t have the courage to leave the country. He said vaguely that he wanted to do something related to making films. “What kind of films do you want to make?” he asked. “A film about showing courage and achieving what one really wants, I suppose,” I interrupted. The boy took it as sarcasm and looked provoked. I didn’t mean to hurt him. The grandpa jokingly tried to calm the situation by saying, “You should make a film about an ignorant man who doesn’t know when or what to say.” We laughed. The old guy asked me to read the room. I apologized to the boy and advised him not to be afraid. It must have triggered something in him after that conversation. I guess just telling anyone not to be afraid is not enough. There are deeper fears to deal with. He didn’t say anything after that. We had our tea and left. I paid the bill again.