Today I invited Dutch friends, Dutch friends of friends, and their friends over to my house for coffee. Can I just tell you how great this little, Dutch ritual is?  Women gathering in the morning to sit and share a conversation over a warm cup of coffee in cute little cups with lepeltjes and stroopwafels and other tasty bites is so gezellig!  I want this for all my friends. It’s something we are often missing in Silicon Valley, although our potluck BBQs are sort of like this. It’s a time to just be together without rushing to the next event or multi-tasking. It’s something the Dutch are very good at.

Gezellig doesn’t have a literal translation in English – it’s sort of intangible and something you just feel. Its meaning includes everything from cozy to friendly, from comfortable to relaxing, and from enjoyable to gregarious.  According to Wikipedia, “A perfect example of untranslatability is seen in the Dutch language through the word gezellig, which does not have an English equivalent. Literally, it means cozy, quaint, or nice, but can also connote time spent with loved ones, seeing a friend after a long absence, or general togetherness.”

Thank you Barb, Brigitta, Pauline, Ilse, and Elsbeth for spending the morning with me and for the downtime, that I usually don’t allow for myself. Let’s do it again soon – I have 90 days left, or we can always meet again in Amsterdam. 🙂

Make time for coffee – it’s a great gift to give yourself. xo