What if a cup of tea could change the world? When I was 21 years old, I found a job as a nanny for a lovely British family in stunning Marin County, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. I’d just moved to California and was adjusting to life in the big city. One day the father came home from work, wearing a heavy expression—one I didn’t understand at my young age. Many years later, once I was juggling the multitudes of work and raising a family, I would know what that look meant. He was just having one of those days. He needed a way to pause before jumping headfirst into the demands of home life—the dog needing a walk, the kid wanting homework help, the dinner plans to discuss. He announced in response to the clamor coming at him, “let’s first have a cup of tea.” I thought this pronouncement sounded terribly sophisticated. I didn’t grow up in a house with daily tea rituals. He calmly made a pot of tea, took a breath, and allowed himself some space.…