The Fresh Joe
Story
In the small village of Barista, deep in the Guatemalan Mountains, life
is hard. Fortunes rise and fall in rhythm with the coffee trade.
From the time of their discovery on an Ethiopian hillside centuries
ago, red coffee berries have always flowed from the baskets of
poor laborers. They are the ones who gather the berries, then
strip them of their pulp and protective parchment to reveal the
green beans hidden inside. Once processed, the beans are loaded
into sacks and shipped all over the globe to be roasted and ground.
The dark nectar produced by combining the grinds with water has
provided the fuel for reflection and revolution throughout the
ages. And so begins our story.
Jose Philippe Espresso and his wife Kathleen were simple people. Although
their existence was meager, the bond they shared enabled them
to overcome many hardships. They lived in a small clay home on
the plantation of wealthy coffee Baron, Greenbeane' Simmierez. They
worked many hours for the wealthy Baron in order to bring home the
smallest of wages. Despite their lot in life, they longed for only
one thing...a child. For years they tried to conceive, but to
no avail. As time passed, the couple began to lose hope of conceiving
until they heard of a woman who lived in the village of Fertile.
As they approached their fiftieth birthdays, they made
a pilgrimage to meet the old woman that would change their lives.
Harvested at the base of the huge Barrios mountain range, fertilian
coffee beans were thought to possess a life-giving ingredient found
nowhere else in the world. With heavy hearts, the couple arrived
at the doorstep of Madam Bambino, known to be the keeper of the special
beans. She ushered them in, poured them each a cup of coffee,
and listened as the couple expressed their deep
desire for a child. When they finished, the Madam got up from her
chair and walked over to the corner of her little hovel. She slowly
bent down to lift a loose floorboard where she kept an earthen jar.
Gingerly she removed one dozen beans and handed them to the Espressos.
She began, "Each evening when the chimes sound midnight, soak a single
bean in water. Place the water and bean at the foot of your bed until
sunrise. When you both awake, share the broth between you equally,
repeating this process for twelve days. On the thirteenth day you
will receive your greatest gift." The Espressos were mesmerized
as the old woman ushered them to her door. With beans in hand,
the two began the long journey back to their village. Upon returning
to Barista, they did exactly as they were instructed to do. The twelve
days seemed an eternity. As they embraced on the thirteenth day, they
gazed out the window towards the mountains, hopeful that the old woman
was right.
As the days turned to weeks Kathleen could not believe
her good fortune. Madam Bambino had delivered on her promise!
When Jose learned that he was going to be a papa, he danced happily
through the village spreading the news. Despite their advancing years
and Kathleen's delicate condition, the Espressos continued to work
long hours in the fields. Although the season was especially grueling,
the knowledge of their new arrival made their burden lighter. Each
day, as they loaded their canasta with cherries, the two sang
folk songs to their unborn child. Finally, the time came.
On a moonlit night, in the tiny mountain village of
Barista, Jose Philippe Kathleen Espresso was born. The entire village
turned out to catch a glimpse of the most beautiful baby they had
ever seen. Blessed with his father's thick black hair and his mother's
fair complexion and green eyes, little Jose was nicknamed "el Chico
con un futuro brillante" by the village; the boy with a bright future.
