All the way from Soho to the Bronx, I savored the last bits of Dragon Pearl Jasmine tea. I’m remembering it still, like a final melancholy cello note, held long enough to draw tears. 

My experience started at Harney & Sons in Soho; a young Harney — third generation — pulled a tin from the wall and brewed my personal cup through a single strainer. A digital timer clocked off five minutes, giving me time to view merchandise, smell the herbs, and note Mr. Harney’s considerable skills. My drink was one of several at the taster bar.

“I’ve been here 13 years,” he said, setting timers for other individual taste tests. “When your name’s Harney, that’s what you do.”

My first sip had the forbidden texture of real butter. On this snowy President’s Day, I felt happy and sad at the same time. One sample cup reminded me of a beautiful passage in Little Bee, by Chris Cleave:

“Tea is the taste of my land; it is bitter and warm, strong, and sharp with memory. It tastes of longing. It tastes of the distance from where you are and where you come from. Also, it vanishes–the taste of it vanishes from your tongue while your lips are still hot from the cup. It disappears like plantations stretching up into the mist.”

One heartbreaking 4 oz. tin costs almost $20, a good price for quality. I can’t handle the withdrawal, at least not everyday.

Tea is mysterious, both for medicinal properties and the corresponding comfort. Like an Englishwoman, I am consoled by its smell and warmth. Tea takes time to prepare and seep. The interval between too hot and too cold is magic and fleeting.

Most studies involve green tea, reported to alleviate inflammatory bowel disease, diabetes, cancer, and bad breath. An article in New Scientist states that green tea’s antioxidants prevent several cancers including lung, breast, and prostate.

Today’s selection was jasmine tea, made from jasmine flowers over a green or white tea base. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, jasmine is one of more than 40 essential oils that improve mood and wellness. The tea originates — appropriately so — from the Song Dynasty (960–1279).

Become a tomato head during American Heart Month.

As the leading cause of death in the United States, heart disease is a major cause of disability, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. By the time you scan this post, an American will have a coronary event, about 25 seconds. Once considered a man’s issue, women account for nearly half of heart disease deaths. 

According to the National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease, 42.7 million American women are living with or at risk for heart disease.

Luckily, we have weapons — healthy lifestyle and food choices. In honor of male and female tickers, add red to your diet.

The perfect Valentine, tomatoes are classified as fruit, specifically berries. However, tomatoes are not as sweet as fruit. Often, they play the role of vegetable in salads and main dishes. 

During Heart Month, tomatoes are especially important because they are high in lycopene, an antioxidant preventing heart disease and cancer.

Eat with love!

The baby hats pictured above are knitted from Ann Norling Kids Fruit Caps.