FAVORITE MEMORIES FROM YEAR TWO

In celebration of our birthday, we’re asking a fun question to our Tala community: what’s your favorite memory of the cafe? We’re reminiscing about the times shared, coffees tried and people met. To answer this question we’re having different people from the Tala team write their responses each day. Follow along to hear some of our highlights from this second year together. You’ll hear about life on the other side of the counter, life after hours, before hours, and lots of fun things that happen in and around the cafe. You’ll hear highlights and memorable moments as well as lessons and reflections. Thanks for following along with us.

Next up: A Fruitful Year by Marcus. There’s a thousand things I could say about Marcus: his love for Alpacas, his joy in the simplest things, his drink-making ability that spans much beyond coffee, his generosity and specificity in gift-giving, his propensity for drama and his strange hobbies like archery to name a few. Marcus is the kind of person that somehow endears himself to everyone uniquely. It seems each person has a special relationship with Marcus, as many of you may have experienced yourself from a nickname he’s given you, an inside joke you’ve shared or any number of other things. It is hard not to love Marcus. We are so happy to have him in the Tala family.

A Fruitful Year

Guest post by Marcus

Regardless of where you are in life or what you're going through, life has a funny way of bringing you joy. In my case, everything began changing for the better when I came to Tala. I was brought on board to the team the day before the cafe's first birthday last year. And let me tell you, so much has happened that this past year has felt like three. In my first year with Tala, I befriended by far the most wonderfully eccentric, goofiest, and most loving group of people that I have ever had the good pleasure of knowing. I had the best espresso I have ever had in my entire life. I single- handedly broke more glass objects than all of the staff combined. I even broke a glass cup on my first day, although, I like to think that it wasn't actually my fault since they were unreasonably fragile pieces of glassware to begin with (but I'll take responsibility for that one). I was thrown a birthday party (against my will) which was the first time I celebrated my birthday (by choice) in quite some time. I had the opportunity to cook for a family who I cherish so dearly in celebration of the birth of their second child. And of course, I experienced a worldwide pandemic. However, the memory that I hold most near and dear to my heart is the one that's so incredibly bananas that it almost sounds made up. 

A week or two into my first month at Tala, a woman came into the cafe and was warmly greeted by all of my co-workers. So, I asked her name, joking how it seemed everyone knew who she was except for me. As she was giving me her name, I remembered who she was. We had gone to school together something around 12 years ago. I even called her by her maiden name, which I'm sure confused her quite a bit. I think it took a good second for her to remember who I was, seeing as the last time we saw each other we were in that mortifying, awkward middle school phase that everyone tries to forget even happened. And now here she is, married and pregnant with a child who—little did I know—was about to bring me the greatest joy that I've ever experience in my life. 

My most treasured memory from this past year, without a doubt, is holding her newborn baby. I will never forget that moment until the day I die. We were all gathered at Tala one night for the birthday celebration of one of the owners and I think she could tell that I wanted to hold her daughter, who had just been born a month prior, but was too afraid to ask. So she smiled and asked if I wanted to hold her. I swear, if we had stayed in touch all those years, I would have busted into uncontrollable, ugly tears the moment she nestled that precious bean into my arms. I still remember so vividly how I felt as that sweet child clutched my thumb with her entire hand. In an instant, the world around me no longer existed and all I cared about was the pure joy of holding a beautiful new life. Holding her was so calming and tender that I couldn't stop smiling for the rest of the night. As a matter of fact, I sobbed to myself on the car ride home after holding her for the first time. That single moment was the greatest part of my year, the greatest part of my twenties honestly. And it would never have happened if I hadn't come to Tala. If I had never come to Tala, I would have never reconnected with someone I went to middle school with all those years ago and I wouldn't have been able to cry my eyes out because I just held her newborn girl. How funny yet magnificent life can turn out to be. 

Thinking back, so much has happened to me this year. There have been much highs and quite a few lows. However, if my experience this past year is any indication, I can be certain that Tala will be the reason for much of the joy that's to come. What a fruitful year it has been indeed. 

What’s your favorite memory?

We want to hear your favorite memories at Tala! This week, we’re giving away a $200 gift card to one lucky individual who tells us their favorite memory. Full details are available below—make sure you post about your memory this week to be entered to win!