My family is not in to tea as much as Chinese people should be. I had been asked multiple times by friends if I drank tea all the time in China. I drink tea, sometimes, but not often, only on special occasion like having guests and formal dinner. However, we do own a very nice set of teapot and teacups, sitting on the top shelf where it will catch your eyeballs as soon as you walk into the living room. It is rarely used because when we did make some tea, we put the leaves directly in to a mug and pour in boiling water – much easier to clean and to carry around. We also have tea – different kinds of tea, lot of them, also stored on the top shelf, in beautiful and delicate containers. Paradoxically we hardly ever drink the tea. After a while when they go bad, we throw them away and bought new ones. Every family in China has tea, and it doesn’t matter the family drinks it or not.
I agree with Macfarlen's Chapters that tea often times serves as a symbol representing some kind of status. Whether consciously or unconsciously, owning china and tea shows off your class and taste. But I don't think that we have tea only because we are materialist and try to show it off to other people. It is the culture. Tea embodies the great Chinese culture that can be discuss over thousands years ago. We have tea because it is an important part of the culture and our lives that shouldn;t be forgotten.
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