My Space

In our regular series on people's favorite spaces, Don Kimon Lightner - Zen tea master, acupuncturist and former monk - shares the spot where he fell in love, his own Japanese tea room.

"I started studying tea in 1997. I was tired of getting hurt in the martial arts, and so wanted a practice more conducive to meditation. Tea is a moving meditation. There is a certain way you do everything, a Zen choreography. I took my vows as a monk in 2001, so what else are you going to do for entertainment. Tea was given to the monks as a way to stay awake.

"Chado (literally the "Way of Tea"; also called chanoyu) is a synthesis of numerous philosophies and arts which culminate into a unique method of preparing and drinking matcha (powdered green tea).

"I built the tearoom so that I could practice and teach tea more fully. I used to practice tea in my dining room but as I advanced I outgrew it. I converted a second bedroom into a tea room we use as a couple once a week. I teach in this room and we entertain in this room. In fact I would some day like to build a separate tea house with two different sized tea rooms and a prep room/kitchen

"The language of the tea room is formal. A full tea serving includes a meal, and can last for hours. There is etiquette. You don't talk about time, how long will it last, finance, politics anything that raises the blood pressure or ignites passions. It's quiet. The colors are subdued.

"I have a tea license by studying with a master, and now tea is a lifestyle for us. It brought me and my wife Heather together. I'd known her for 6 years as close friends. It wasn't until I prepared a tea for her as part of trading services that I saw her in another way. Neither of us wanted the tea to end. There was something familiar and new. She knew to bring a gift, the perfect gift - an orchid.

"Tea brings a deliberateness to everyday life. Ordinary objects are viewed as art. I made all the bowls (chawan). The items in the picture are (starting in back) mishima mizusashi/water jar, black seto chawan/tea bowl, shino chawan/tea bowl, bamboo futaoki/lid rest, bamboo chashaku/tea scoops and containers, chaire/tea caddies with shifuku/silk pouches.

Tea is seasonal. I change the room for the summer.  The sunken hearth is closed up and the more portable brazier is put out.

Tea as in life. If you're not going to do it fully now, when are you going to?

*For more on tea ceremony and Don Kimon Lightner, visit Kimon Wellness.

*For more on bodywork specialist Heather Walker, click here.