Hello, my name is Robyn, and I am a coffee addict.

I cannot go more than a few hours into my day without coffee and maintain hope that my caffeine monster isn’t going to give me a raging, knock-your-eyeballs-out, curse-the-sun-and-all-light-forms headache. Before my husband and I went to Costa Rica a couple of years ago, he was not a coffee drinker and would question the presence of this monster. We would dialogue somewhat frequently about whether or not being this addicted to anything could be acceptable. The side effects of coffee are not considered to be equivalent with the negative consequences of things like drugs and alcohol, but at its core, it’s still an addiction. He wondered if it was getting overlooked as an addiction, because it is far less damaging. Then, we went on our trip, and he tried that little bean’s sweet, sweet, nectar, and it was game over for him, too.

Our jury is still out on whether or not a caffeine addiction is admissible, but going further down that rabbit hole right now will completely digress from the actual goal of this post.

We are now a coffee-loving family. My husband grabs a massive jug of coffee on his way to work, and I keep a canister of grounds on my bookshelf for whenever I need to refuel during the school day. When we have to drive anywhere, there is inevitably at least one stop for coffee. And, one of our favorite times together are weekend mornings, sitting on the couch or balcony, sipping a cup of fresh, French press coffee. Most weekdays we don’t get the luxury of enjoying the quality of coffee that we get during our slower-paced weekend mornings, so we try to make those cups extra special.

When I get coffee for our French press, I always go for the best beans. I have two favorites that I want to share, because not only are they both some of the best coffee I have ever had, but because they are also doing far more than just producing coffee. For my local crowd (and maybe not as local as they used to be), you cannot beat Spearhead. This is probably a no-brainer as they have become quite a force on the Central Coast. They have some of the best, if not the best, coffee and espresso I have ever had anywhere. What I love even more about Spearhead, though, is their social awareness. They do it quietly but powerfully. All of their product comes directly from farms that fairly support their employees. In fact, the men who own Spearhead started the company partly because they had witnessed the atrocity of human trafficking and wanted to do something practical to help end it. They are serving the global community in radical ways while they serve us a stellar product.

My other favorite cup of Joe comes from a company called 41 & Change Coffee Co. I discovered this company a few years ago when I was in Nicaragua. The coffee comes from Northern Nicaragua on a plantation owned by Young Life, and it was deemed to be in the top 3% of coffee worldwide. It is DELICIOUS. Starbucks tried to buy the fruit at one point, but the company would not let them have it. What they decided to do instead was train and build up the local labor force and provide them with the skills and resources necessary to create a positive, reasonable living for local families. For the most impoverished country in Central America, this was kind of a revolutionary decision! This wasn’t all they did, though. They also decided to set aside a portion of the proceeds to be used to pay for Nicaraguan kids to attend Young Life camp.

I love that I can take something as mundane as drinking a cup of coffee and turn it into an opportunity to outpace ordinary. Simply being a socially conscious consumer can elevate the little things in life to the things that really cause global change. My encouragement on this beautiful Saturday morning is that you take just a moment to consider selecting coffee (or other products) that support positive, social change. Choose Spearhead or 41 & Change, or find another coffee company that advocates for a cause you feel strongly about. Whatever company you decide to support, that small choice will move you toward a life that outpaces ordinary.

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