Finally trying my "Battle Buddy" tea

Life has, of course, been very different over the past two months as I’ve been adjusting to life without Alex here. The other day, I discovered some tea that I hadn’t tried yet, a tea that I clearly remember buying on our visit to see family in late March. The name “Battle Buddy” struck me as meaningful, because Alex was my husband but also my “Battle Buddy” in life. We had the same slightly warped sense of humor and lots of the same thoughts about things in the news, and I can’t tell you how many times over the past two months I’ve thought, “I need to remember to tell Alex that such and such happened” and then remembered that oops, I’ll have to wait and tell him in Heaven, assuming I still care about the tidbit once I get there. So this tea had seemed a little “precious” to me because it was the last one I bought on a trip with him. This week, though, I looked at it and thought, “Just drink the tea!” I know he would tell me it was stupid to save this tea just because it was the last one I bought when he was still here on earth. And so I tried the tea.

This is the second tea I got that day from Skirted Soldier, a female-veteran-owned company, and I had already forgotten that their teas appear to be hand-packaged in this nice drawstring tea bag. It had a lovely vanilla scent, and I had a feeling the flavor would match.

I’m happy to report that the taste was as yummy as the scent! It was a rich black tea with lots of vanilla and a hint of the spearmint, orange peel, and bergamot flavors, so it was quite a complex blend and one I thoroughly enjoyed. I’m glad I went ahead and tried it, and I think my "Battle Buddy" would be too. (I'm also grateful I have so many good tea memories with him. They're a blessing to have!)