As the sun rises between the misty mountains, the rooster crows informing the town that it is time to awaken. Shortly after, you can hear the “swish, swish” of the broom sweeping the pavement. Before the sun has fully risen, the streets and markets are bustling with people and conversations.

Mornings are my favorite time of day in Haiti. Mornings are often a time of day that we do not appreciate as we are running around as quickly as possible to get ready and get out of the house. We brew a cup of coffee in our coffee makers, pour it into our to go mugs, and hit the road. We are often more concerned with the caffeine entering our system to wake us up, rather than the taste and experience of drinking coffee. In Haiti, the experience of drinking coffee makes mornings the best part of the day.

In the Central Plateau of Haiti, there is an art to making coffee. The coffee grinds are placed into a special fabric and the fabric is hung using sticks from the pot. They boil the water and slowly pour it over the fabric. They then put a piece of sugarcane into the coffee to sweeten it. To make the coffee stronger, they lower the fabric into the water, letting it steep, until the coffee has reached the desired strength. The coffee is then poured into a little mug, to be enjoyed by sipping.

Many mornings as I sip my coffee, I sit and watch the sun rise, I watch the fog lift from the mountains, and I listen to the birds come to life. Haiti has shown me the beauty of mornings and I look forwarding to appreciating the beauty of mornings at my own home.