Pipe and the sound of rain falling.

Some mornings are more difficult than others. Can you relate? Or are you the kind of person who jumps out of bed without hesitation or procrastination? Even David Goggins has to stare at his sneakers for hours before a run. If you're someone who lives each day with intention and purpose, I have so much respect for you.

I love animals. I love plants, trees, and everything that breathes. I care about nature and know I’m part of it. The other day, I heard some cats outside the tea room, so I opened the window and said hi. Cats are lovely. So are spiders. I try not to judge by how many legs something has. The stray cats stared back for a bit, then ran off.

Unexpected things happen when you run a small business. Just before a session recently, the AC started leaking. As someone who cares about the environment, I’m not trying to turn the tea room into a fridge. But keeping the temperature at a certain level for comfortable experience matters. I cleaned up the water, set a bucket down, and we went on with the session. The AC still worked fine, just happened to make this random rainfall sound from the leak.

Some mornings are harder. Maybe you don’t feel that way. Maybe you’re Michael Jordan. But there are mornings I wish there were no more surprises. No more things to fix. It gets tiring. Solving problems, connecting dots, staying calm.

But that’s just life. Not just for small business owners. Even when I worked in the corporate world, unexpected things happened all the time. Bad news comes. Plans change. Everyone has something to carry. Maybe your mornings are tough too. Even if you don’t say so.

Turns out the cute cats outside knocked a pipe upward. The AC couldn’t drain, so the water flowed back and started leaking. That’s what made the rainfall sound.

It’s not easy accepting that this is life. Accepting that not all mornings will be smooth. That problems will keep coming, and we don’t get to choose the ones we’d rather fix. All issues arrive at once, equally messy. Like spiders and cats.

Even after all these years, I still struggle with that. I don’t fully understand it, let alone accept it. But I know just enough to get by. And that little bit of understanding gets me up in the morning. It helps me keep going.

We’ve been hosting calligraphy, tea snack making, and tea ceremony sessions for a while now. These aren’t just cultural experiences. There’s something deeper. Even when mornings are hard, I get up for the small, silly joys. The watermelon waiting in the fridge. A lunch I’ve been looking forward to. The cats I saw the day before. Those small things are what get me moving.

Some guests are travelers. Others live and work here. Some of their mornings are probably hard too. And that’s okay. We all struggle. We all have our stories. But we don’t always talk about it, especially with strangers.

Still, when you sit down, press a snack into shape, pour tea into a cup, and breathe, something shifts. You might rediscover the fun in life. You might feel a little lighter.

So, what’s the takeaway from this post? That the AC is working fine now. It’s hot and humid in Seoul this week. Come join us. Bring your friends or family. Share some tea and snacks with us in an air-conditioned room. That we also have a nice air circulator.

And if you’re lucky, you might see the cats outside. One of them has eyes the color of green tea.

Life is sometimes about pleasant surprises. Or is it? Like those cute cats who messed with the pipe and made the AC leak.

Wait, did you see her? ©Jason.

I admit now, some of my mornings are harder than others…I’m no David Goggins or Michale Jordan.

Jason

-

Jason runs Heesum, a traditional Korean tea room in Seoul where guests can experience a hands-on Korean tea ceremony. With a background in journalism and past work as a writer for a global Fortune 10 company, he brings both storytelling and hospitality to the tea table. A passionate painter, photographer, and long-time tea lover, Jason now co-hosts Heesum’s tea sessions with certified tea master Songna, who guides each ceremony with deep knowledge and warmth. If you’re looking for an authentic Korean tea ceremony in Seoul, Heesum offers a personal and culturally rich experience.