An Aroma sweet and pleasing to the Lord

I am sad to say a chapter in my life has closed.
Aroma Underground coffee shop closed this past Saturday.
When Sage told me it was closing so many thoughts raced through my mind:

Where will Anna Grace get her Chai Teas?
Where will I get my Chai Teas?
Aroma makes the BEST smoothies in town! Now where will I go?
I love Aromas milkshakes...I will never get one again?
Where will people meet and hang out in the mornings?

My daily routine for the past year has consisted of me dropping Anna Grace off at school on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 9:00 and then driving to the coffee shop for a Chai Tea and some sort of yummy sweet treat for breakfast. What am I going to do on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays between 9 and 10?!?

The other day when I walked into the coffee shop I was talking on my phone (to Sage) and hadn't had time to step up to the counter and order my regular drink yet. That is when David wrote on a cup "Regular?" I nodded my head and by the time I was off the phone my drink was made.
And another day I walked in the door and Jimmy was behind the counter busily working away. As I approached the register he handed me my Spiced Chai Tea steamed at 120. What service! Where am I going to find it anywhere else in town??

And the people I ran into at the coffee shop. Will I see them again in Florence? The great conversations I have had with so many people....Tim, Tommy, Paola, Sage, Cyprian, Ushi....so many wonderful conversations with people just sipping on coffee and drinks at a coffee shop...just relaxing for a few moments without our children and being able to focus on conversation...where will I go to get that? Will I be able to talk with these people again?

And all of my friends from out of town. They always want to go and get a drink at the coffee shop, relax and catch up...Mary, Terrica, Clay, Sallie, Ashley, mom, dad...where will we go?

But after all of these thoughts raced through my head, I was relieved for my sister and her husband. They have had so much on them, they need a break. Sage is going to have her second child in one week! Precious baby Walker will be here with us soon. She definitely didn't need the added stress of a coffee shop on top of raising two children. Now my sister can finally be a stay-at-home mom and I am so happy for her!

I am sad the coffee shop has closed. So many memories that I will never forget. From the first time it opened on Celebration Blvd...to closing on Pamplico. Four years of wonderful drinks, conversations and memories. In essence this coffee shop has been a place to me where I can go and "everyone knows my name". It has been so special to me. And I have loved what it stood for. When Sage and Wes opened it, they said this was their ministry...a way to reach out to the community of Florence and show them the love of God...it is an aroma sweet and pleasing to the Lord and that is what it has always been - an aroma sweet and pleasing to the Lord.

The words of "Good Riddance" by Green Day have stuck in my head since Sage told me the shop was closing, so I will close with these words...

Another turning point a fork stuck in the road
Time grabs you by the wrist directs you where to go
So make the best of this test and don't ask why
It's not a question but a lesson learned in time

It's something unpredictable
But in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life

So take the photographs and still frames in your mind
Hang it on a shelf in good health and good time
Tattoos of memories and dead skin on trial
For what it's worth it was worth all the while

It's something unpredictable
But in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life

It's something unpredictable
But in the end is right
I hope you had the time of your life

Thanks for the memories!!

Sage and Wes at the coffee shop on Celebration before it opened.


Four years later - Sage and Wes on Thursday night at the coffee shop before it closed - and she is pregnant with Walker.


Thomas and me at the coffee shop on Celebration before it opened. I am actually pregnant with Anna Grace in this picture...who knew she would grow to love chai tea as much as her mommy?


Four years later - Thomas and I on Thursday night at the coffee shop...for the last time. Sipping on one of those delicious frozen hot chocolate milkshakes!