Between-Light Tea
Today the light and dark are sharing the day.
This feels unusually cooperative of them.
The afternoon was still warm when I gathered the lemon balm. It has not yet accepted that summer is ending and continues to grow with cheerful disregard for the calendar.
I admire this in a herb.
The dried apple came from the kitchen shelf, saved from earlier abundance. The green tea sat between them on the table looking sensible and grassy, as though it had been asked to mediate.
Smokey watched from the windowsill.
He remains suspicious of any beverage requiring three separate plant negotiations.
I heated the water gently, stopping before the kettle reached a full boil. Even that felt mildly unreasonable beside the open window, with warm air still moving through the garden.
The apple went in first.
Then the green tea and bruised lemon balm.
The cup turned pale green-gold while it steeped. Bright at the edges. Softer underneath.
I tasted it before reaching for the honey.
The apple had already done enough.
This is important. Sometimes sweetness arrives early and requires no further management.
I drank the first cup while the afternoon was warm and let it cool almost to room temperature. It became gentler as it sat. Less grassy. More gathered.
By evening, the lantern was lit and I wanted another.
The garden can still be growing while the light begins leaving earlier. What was gathered can sit beside what is still green.
Apparently balance does not require everything to meet neatly in the middle.
Sometimes two things simply share the cup.
Maeve’s Between-Light Tea
For one generous mug:
- 1 teaspoon loose-leaf green tea
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon balm leaves, lightly bruised
- 2–3 thin pieces dried apple
- 10–12 oz / 300–350 ml water
- ½ teaspoon honey, optional
Heat the water to about 175°F / 80°C rather than bringing it to a full boil.
Place the dried apple in your cup or pot and pour over the hot water. Let it sit for about 2 minutes.
Add the green tea and fresh lemon balm.
Steep for another 2–3 minutes, then strain.
Taste before adding honey. The apple may have given the cup all the soft sweetness it needs.
Drink beside an open window while September is still warm, if possible.
It is also lovely allowed to cool toward room temperature, though Smokey considers this evidence that I forgot about it.
He is occasionally correct.
Tea is still a potion without cinnamon.
The equinox said so.
