The bitter side that can't be hidden

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Just like the previous night, I returned to this place, sitting in a coffee shop not too far from the city center with the same purpose. Looking for inspiration at night to write an article. A few minutes passed, there was nothing I did but order my favorite drink. The rain that suddenly fell made the atmosphere tonight very suitable for drinking coffee. A glass of coffee, a friend who always faithfully accompanies every night. It doesn't feel good if you hang out together at night without being accompanied by a glass of coffee. Some say that in the taste of coffee there is a feeling of pleasure that can be felt after working all day.

But have you ever tasted coffee without anything you did that day? Only the taste of coffee is what you feel without any deep meaning that you can think of.

In the past, we both accepted the consequences. But now, why am I the only one who feels the bitterness of coffee? Is it because I used to be the only one who didn't like coffee?

But, at that time he managed to convince me that the bitter taste of coffee was a necessity, a consequence that had to be enjoyed in order to feel the essence of the coffee philosophy that he always believed in.

The symbol of the most sincere love in life, that's what he used to say.

Aryo suddenly put something in front of me. When I looked up, he was already seen seriously sprinkling coffee powder on the white checkered board. I don't know what he wanted to do, but his hands looked skilled at sprinkling and rubbing the coffee powder on the board until it formed a picture.

"You know, Nai .... Why do I really like coffee?" Aryo asked, still focused on the coffee powder in front of him. I just stared at him confused.

"I don't know, maybe because of the taste," I answered simply.

"Not only because of the taste. But, the essence and philosophy,"
"What do you mean?"

"Apart from the delicious taste of coffee and its alluring aroma, I think coffee always has its own appeal to its drinkers and after learning to mix my own coffee, I feel like I found a philosophy."

"What philosophy?" I asked without curiosity. Because actually I'm not interested in coffee. But unfortunately, when it comes to coffee, Aryo can talk at length until it makes me bored.

“The philosophy of coffee that I got when mixing it. I always think, how can I balance the measurements of coffee, sugar with water to produce a perfectly delicious coffee brew. But, after you tried my coffee several times, I realized something…”

“I will never be able to create the perfection of taste in coffee. Because no matter how much I want to hide the bitterness of coffee so that you admit that my coffee is delicious, I still can’t. That day you said, my coffee is getting worse because the sweetness is too legit, almost bitter. Then do you remember what we talked about the other day about perfection?”

“Yes, I remember. Perfection is an absolute right that only God has. The more you pursue perfection, the less you will be satisfied with what God has given. It ends up with no gratitude and sincerity in life,” I answered calmly. From the side, I saw his smiling expression.

“After hearing what you said that day, I thought, if I keep pursuing perfection in making coffee, I won’t be able to make the right coffee for you. So…” Aryo’s words hung again.

I just rolled my lazy eyes. Today he had become like a barista who had only done research and experiments in making coffee all his life.

“Can you not talk in circles? Just keep it to the point, so I understand,” I said without Aryo paying attention.

“Yes, yes, this is the point. So, today when I made coffee for you again, I let my hands move following my intuition while making coffee without wanting to make it perfect again. I just wanted to make the best coffee for my best friend seriously and this is the result, today your facial expression shows that my coffee tastes delicious,”

“Why are you sure that I taste the deliciousness of coffee for you today?” I asked while looking at him.

“Why is that? I’m sure. Even though you don’t like coffee and always say that the coffee I make tastes the same, you still drink my coffee, right? You want to drink coffee and endure the bitterness so that I won’t be disappointed. Then, today you enjoyed the coffee without commenting like the previous days because you sincerely drank it for your friend. And there’s one more thing I want to tell you, Nai,” said Aryo seriously.

My heart immediately started beating erratically when I saw him. But I remained silent waiting for what he wanted to say.

“I’ll only say this once, so you have to listen to it. The bitter side of coffee will always be there. Because coffee must have a bitter taste. So, don’t hate the bitter taste. Because life is essentially like a cup of coffee that has a sweet and bitter taste. This happens in everyone’s life. Therefore, coffee always provides a different variety of flavors for each drinker. It depends on how to mix and enjoy the coffee. The more we are sincere and grateful, this life will feel delicious, just like when we sip coffee, as long as we can withstand the bitter taste of coffee, everything will feel delicious," Aryo explained.

I was silent, was that all he wanted to say? I thought it was about what? Again about coffee.