Cozy Moment Friday: The Tea Box

"The Tea Box"

I always find the days right after hitting the "publish" button and sending a book out into the world to be strange and sort of difficult. I'm not sure why, but I guess it's a lot like going from 100 to 0 in the matter of a few minutes. Getting a book ready for publication takes so much work, and then, when you finally get it done and publish it, and you've done everything you can possibly do, a strangeness settles in when you realize that now is the time to relax and let go of it. It's kind of like a post-book malaise of some sort, and it usually lasts a couple of days where you walk around too exhausted to really do anything, but antsy as can be to do something. 

Anyway, right after publishing Bulldogs & Bullets this week, I found myself in that strange feeling. One day, I got all ready to go down to the plaza to walk around, but found that the process of getting ready exhausted me so much, that I just lay on the sofa instead! 

But later that afternoon, I went to go check the mailbox and I was surprised to find a package waiting for me there. I brought it back, opened it up, and was pleased as pie to find not only a beautiful, delicious loaf of banana bread, but also this other amazing item: 

This beautiful tea box was specially made for me by my sister, the wonderfully talented woodworker who goes by The Lumberjill. She made it out of reclaimed fence wood that I helped her transport to her shop one day a few months ago. The box not only has little compartments for tea, but it also has my initials wood-burned onto it!

Needless to say, I was totally blown away by the thoughtful gift, and I felt myself yanked out of that post-book malaise and into a much better feeling (the banana bread helped with that also ;) It always amazes me when my sister turns something like a pile of old fencing - something that nobody would want - into a beautiful piece of art. It reminds me that everything is beautiful. Sometimes you just have to get beneath the rough exterior to see that :).  

That was hands-down my cozy moment of the week. Now I have a wonderful place to store my tea collection, and a special piece that I'll always treasure. And what about that loaf of banana bread, you say? Well, I would love to show you a picture of that too, but I'm afraid it couldn't make it to the photo shoot ;)

What about you? What was your cozy moment this week? Leave a comment below for a chance to win a digital copy of my newest book, Bulldogs & Bullets!