Every morning begins the same way. I fill the kettle. Grind the beans. Wait for water to boil. Pour slowly over grounds. Watch the bloom, the drip, the gradual accumulation of dark liquid in the glass carafe below.
This takes twelve minutes, start to finish. Twelve minutes I could save with a pod machine or instant coffee. Twelve minutes that used to feel like wasted time.
Now they're the most important twelve minutes of my day.
I live alone. There's no one to make coffee for but myself. No conversation over breakfast. No reason to make it special or deliberate. I could drink it standing at the counter, scrolling my phone.
But I don't. I make it slowly. I pour it into a mug I like. I sit at the table by the window. I do nothing but drink coffee and look out at the morning.
This is my ceremony. Simple, solitary, sufficient.
We're told ritual requires others, tradition, inherited meaning. Weddings and funerals and holiday gatherings. But I think we can create our own ceremonies for an audience of one.
Making coffee has become mine. Not because coffee is special, but because I've made it so through repetition and attention. The same steps, the same order, the same pace. A framework that holds space for the day to begin properly.
Some mornings I'm tired. Some mornings I'm anxious about what's ahead. But for these twelve minutes, I'm just here. Grinding beans. Pouring water. Being present for this one small act.
I've come to understand that ritual isn't really about the action itself. It's about creating a container for presence. A way of saying: this matters. This moment, right now, deserves my full attention.
You don't need other people for that. You don't need ancient traditions or elaborate ceremonies. You just need consistency, intention, and respect for your own experience.
Tomorrow morning, I'll fill the kettle again. Grind the beans. Wait for water to boil. And for twelve minutes, I'll be exactly where I am, doing exactly what I'm doing. Nothing more, nothing less.
A ritual of one. Sufficient. Sacred in its simplicity.