Sign of the Times: Hanging Coffee

There is a little coffee shop, where two people arrive and approached the counter.

“Five coffees ☕️please. Two for us and three hanging.”

They paid, they took their two coffees and left.

I asked the waiter. “What’s this about hanging coffees?”

“Wait and you’ll see.”

Some more people came in.

Two girls asked for a coffee each, they paid & left.

The following order was for seven coffees and it was made by three women – ‘three for them and four hanging coffees.’

I was left wondering…what is the meaning of the hanging coffees, they leave.

Then, a man dressed in worn clothes, who looks like he might be homeless, arrives at the counter and asks sincerely…

“Do you have a coffee hanging?”

“Yes we do, sir.”

They serve him a coffee…. I got my answer.

People pay in advance for a coffee that will be served to whoever can’t afford a hot drink.

This tradition started in Naples.

Amazingly, it has spread throughout the world’s cities and towns.

It’s also possible to order not only “hanging coffees” but also a sandwich or a full low cost meal.

Wouldn’t it be great if we could all start doing this in the cities and towns where we live?

Small kindnesses like this can impact so many lives, in ways we could never imagine.

Maybe we should all try it.

First Sign of Civilization

11 Margaret Mead Quotes that Show Change Starts with You

Years ago, anthropologist Margaret Mead was asked by a student what she considered to be the first sign of civilization in a culture. The student expected Mead to talk about fishhooks or clay pots or grinding stones.
But no. Mead said that the first sign of civilization in an ancient culture was a femur (thighbone) that had been broken and then healed. Mead explained that in the animal kingdom, if you break your leg, you die. You cannot run from danger, get to the river for a drink or hunt for food. You are meat for prowling beasts. No animal survives a broken leg long enough for the bone to heal.
A broken femur that has healed is evidence that someone has taken time to stay with the one who fell, has bound up the wound, has carried the person to safety and has tended the person through recovery. Helping someone else through difficulty is where civilization starts, Mead said.”
“We are at our best when we serve others. Be civilized.”
– Ira Byock.