I remember the day very well. I realized that my mormon friends not only didn't drink coffee, they were all wound up tight and never stopped. They were like the ever-ready bunny that just kept marching along. There was no down time for them to just kick back and get together for coffee or postum. No time to visit, or solidify friendships. No time to debrief from the difficulties of the day or week. Not even a half hour to stop and then get back to business feeling rested and revived.

I also found many mormon women friends who claimed that they didn't work outside the home but took in ironing, babysat, during the day, and were off selling merchandise at some party in the evening, sandwiching in visiting teaching, and other church responsibilities. That was back in the day when every single day had the potential for a woman having to leave her home for some meeting and leaving her children or family unattended.

My non mormon friends knew I didn't drink coffee and therefore did not invite me over or to any of their get-togethers.

At that time I was struck by the fact that I could be in a church of over 200 people and feel utterly alone.

I ordered my first cup and the rest was history, as they say.

Coffee is delicious. I remember trying to convince myself I didn't like the smell, so I could stop wishing I was allowed to have some.

I felt the exact same way as you did while at church. Mormons can be very cliquey and arrogant in part due to their holier-than-thou herd mentality.

Best wishes to you on your journey out!

I've never had even a cup (I don't think!) of plain hot coffee in my life (a few scattered SWALLOWS, here and there---mostly on camping trips)...but I began adding instant organic coffee (one heaping teaspoon per cup) to my soymilk cocoa every day because the nutritional/medical case was successfully made to me that it would be a healthy plus on a number of important levels...

...and in solidarity with my coffee-loving life partner. Every time I add that teaspoon of instant coffee to my hot cocoa, I send him love, regardless of where he is.

So I now "drink coffee" every day...even though the coffee is dissolved in hot cocoa. :)

That's a great combination. I have several recipes that say to add espresso powder to a chocolate cake recipe.

My mormon grandmother always made coffee and I remember waking up to the smell and loving it. I never did drink it until my children were grown and like I explained, made the conscious decision to start drinking it. I know that coffee was simply my first step toward actually leaving.

That mother of mine used to drink postum and gave it to me when I was VERY young.

Around 6th grade I realized that the 7/11 had something very similar but was much better in these glass pitchers on hot plates. Of course I knew what coffee was and it made Jesus mad, but in my mind, there was no difference, so I started my love of the stuff at 12 or so.

I never bothered to stop either. En route to the MTC on the plane with my mom, I ordered a decaf and you'd have thought I had asked for a line of blow.

I was forced to go cold turkey in the MTC, but in Japan, I bought it from the hot vending machines all the time.

I have my hot mug right here.

A benefit of drinking coffee while traveling in Mormon country is that strangers more easily warm up to you. They know you're not a weirdo.

My first taste of sin was a Styrofoam cup of coffee during basic training at Ft. Leonardwood, MO.

My company was out on a 3-day bivouac. The weather was terrible - raining nonstop, cold and dreary. The cook service truck had a thermos-type coffee dispenser and my nonmo battle buddy insisted I have a cup. For the sake of warmth, I drank up.

Government-issue coffee is pretty awful; however, huddled together in a group of my peers and fellow soldiers sipping nasty GI coffee, there was laughter and giggling and for a brief moment, life was almost normal again.

Mormons are obsessed about the sin of drinking coffee; ironic as it is such a huge part of mormon Utah heritage.

You are so right. My mormon grandmother lived in Utah and her mormon polygamous mother made it as well. I guess we could call coffee drinking in Utah the worst kept secret of all.LOL