The story of Coffee.

Telling stories to grandchildren is an enjoyable pastime. Stories are very good for them. All children love stories, so you must tell them or read to them good stories as often as possible.

Here I am in a Coffee Shop, telling the story of Coffee to my grandson. It is a nice feeling as he listens to me so intently. He is too young to understand but he is quietly listening to me as I point out to everything at the place and narrate the story of Coffee. As I do this I must admit that it is not easy for me to have my cup of Coffee. It is a sip and the story…a sip and the story again, and both of us are amused.

Good Coffee is always a winner, so refreshing and energetic.

And here is the Story of Coffee as I know it and have recounted it a number of times, to children and companions:

According to legend, Coffee was discovered over a thousand years ago in the highlands of Ethiopia by a goat-herder named Herder Kaldi. While tending his goats, Kaldi noticed that some of them were eating the little red berries and shiny leaves off a plant. After they had eaten the berries, they were extraordinarily vigorous, excitable, alert and virtually dancing. Kaldi decided to try some, and when he did, he joined the excited goats! So Kaldi harvested some of the beans and remained very happy eating the berries. Sometime later, a passing monk observed Kaldi and the agile goats and enquired about the reasons for their very active condition. When Kaldi told the monk of the berries, the monk was excited. The monk was always falling asleep in the middle of the prayers and this information appeared to be an answer to his wish. He tried the berries and stayed awake. For sometime Kaldi and the unnamed monk continued to have the berries but later the monk and Kaldi came up with an idea to use the dried up berries. They boiled the dried up berries and made a beverage which they could have as and when they like. The monk introduced this drink to his fellow monks and they too loved this new drink as it tasted good and encouraged them to be alert and pray for a longer time.  This drink was then known by names like Qahwah and Quwwa and then the Dutch began calling it Koffie and the English as Coffee as we now know it. This is how our Coffee and our Coffee industries were born.