---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Now the tea began to do its work- as it…"
description: "\"“Now the tea began to do its work- as it always did- and the world that only a few minutes previously had seemed so bleak started to seem less so.”\" — ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ea/alexander-mccall-smith-372_bleak_now-the-tea-began-to-do-its-work-as-it-a_2348878.png"
---

#  Now the tea began to do its work- as it always did- and…

![“Now the tea began to do its work- as it always did- and the world that only a few minutes previously had seemed so bleak started to seem less so.” quote by Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ea/alexander-mccall-smith-372_bleak_now-the-tea-began-to-do-its-work-as-it-a_2348878.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ea/alexander-mccall-smith-372_bleak_now-the-tea-began-to-do-its-work-as-it-a_2348878.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ea/alexander-mccall-smith-372_bleak_now-the-tea-began-to-do-its-work-as-it-a_2348878.png)

> ““Now the tea began to do its work- as it always did- and the world that only a few minutes previously had seemed so bleak started to seem less so.””

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

A small comforting ritual can shift perspective, turning a bleak moment into a more hopeful one.

**In simple terms:** A simple habit can improve mood.

Key Takeaway

Use small comforts to change outlook.

Themes

comfort perspective hope routine mindfulness

Mood

calm optimistic reflective

Type

inspirational philosophical literary

When to use this quote

- morning coffee
- tea break
- stressful meetings
- loneliness
- sadness

Key Concepts

psychology habits cognitive reframing

Questions to Reflect On

- What small habit could you introduce to improve a tough day?
- How does ritual help reframe negative thoughts?

A Different Perspective

Only works if the ritual is genuinely soothing; otherwise it may feel forced.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Began Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/began-work-1618957/) [Bleak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bleak/) [Bleak Started](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bleak-started-5711650/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Previously Bleak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/previously-bleak-5711649/) [Tea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tea/) [Tea Began](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tea-began-677173/)

## Related quotes

> [Tea began as a medicine and grew into a beverage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/okakura-kakuzo/tea-began-as-a-medicine-and-grew-into-a-beverage/)

[Okakura Kakuzo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/okakura-kakuzo/)

> [It is remarkable that God began this work among the Indians at a time when I had the least hope, and to my apprehension…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brainerd/it-is-remarkable-that-god-began-this-work-among-the-indians-at-a-time/)

[David Brainerd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brainerd/)

> [My background is in painting but in school in the sixties, like many artists of that time, I believed that painting was dead. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wegman/my-background-is-in-painting-but-in-school-in-the-sixties-like-many/)

[William Wegman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wegman/)

> [“They began work at 5:30 and quit at 7 at night. Children six years old going home to lie on a straw pallet until…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-jones/they-began-work-at-5-30-and-quit-at-7-at-night-children-six-years-old/)

[Mother Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-jones/)

> [I began to work the stage and get the audience into it. I also learned how to have fun out there. It is something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaliyah/i-began-to-work-the-stage-and-get-the-audience-into-it-i-also-learned/)

[Aaliyah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaliyah/)

> [“He began to work on me with his mouth, making me pant and beg in scant seconds.  After coaxing a quick, intense orgasm out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-k-lilley/he-began-to-work-on-me-with-his-mouth-making-me-pant-and-beg-in-scant/)

[R.K. Lilley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-k-lilley/)

> [Without delay I began work, without hesitation and all of a fever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gauguin/without-delay-i-began-work-without-hesitation-and-all-of-a-fever/)

[Paul Gauguin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gauguin/)

> [Jesus was about thirty years old when he began his work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/jesus-was-about-thirty-years-old-when-he-began-his-work/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I began my work as director of the Arab American Association of New York in the wake of the horrific attacks of 9/11.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-sarsour/i-began-my-work-as-director-of-the-arab-american-association-of-new/)

[Linda Sarsour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-sarsour/)

> [Painters aren't expected to paint bleak pictures, are they?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/painters-aren-t-expected-to-paint-bleak-pictures-are-they/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

> [Fiction is able to encompass books that are bleak and which dwell on the manifold and terrible problems of our times. But I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/fiction-is-able-to-encompass-books-that-are-bleak-and-which-dwell-on/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

> [No wonder of it: sheer plod makes plough down sillion Shine, and blue-bleak embers, ah my dear, Fall, gall themselves, and gash gold-vermilion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-manley-hopkins/no-wonder-of-it-sheer-plod-makes-plough-down-sillion-shine-and-blue/)

[Gerard Manley Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-manley-hopkins/)

> [I felt cheated by the way grown-ups told me that the future of the world was bleak when I became a teenager in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-ridley/i-felt-cheated-by-the-way-grown-ups-told-me-that-the-future-of-the/)

[Matt Ridley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-ridley/)

> [I wonder whether my bleak-o-meter is set differently from other people's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-arnold/i-wonder-whether-my-bleak-o-meter-is-set-differently-from-other/)

[Andrea Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-arnold/)

> [Single-sex private schools, especially in the middle of nowhere on a bleak hill in County Durham - I don't think they make sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-deacon/single-sex-private-schools-especially-in-the-middle-of-nowhere-on-a/)

[Giles Deacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-deacon/)

## More by Alexander McCall Smith

> [“old-fashioned, gentle Scottish physician, unmoved by the considerations of profit and personal gain that could so disfigure medicine. That doctors should consider themselves businessmen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/old-fashioned-gentle-scottish-physician-unmoved-by-the-considerations/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

> [“She had not made a lot of money, but she had not made a loss, and she had been happy and entertained. That counted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/she-had-not-made-a-lot-of-money-but-she-had-not-made-a-loss-and-she/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

> [And that, in a way, was the burden of being a philosopher: one knew what one had to do, but it was so often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/and-that-in-a-way-was-the-burden-of-being-a-philosopher-one-knew-what/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

> [“To use strong language, she thought, was a sign of bad temper and lack of concern for others. Such people were not clever or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/to-use-strong-language-she-thought-was-a-sign-of-bad-temper-and-lack/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

> [“Men are very sensitive, Mma Makutsi. You would not always think it to look at them, but they are. They do not like you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/men-are-very-sensitive-mma-makutsi-you-would-not-always-think-it-to/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

> [“He is a good man, but even a good man can fall for a glamorous woman. That is well known.” “That is very well…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/he-is-a-good-man-but-even-a-good-man-can-fall-for-a-glamorous-woman/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

> [“And then the second thing you have to do is go and see your son. That is a duty of love, Andrew. It's as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/and-then-the-second-thing-you-have-to-do-is-go-and-see-your-son-that/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

> [“Because laughs never die away entirely,” said Jamie. “At least, if you believe in Marconi.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/because-laughs-never-die-away-entirely-said-jamie-at-least-if-you/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

> [“The trouble with having a conscience, she said to herself, is that it never sleeps.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/the-trouble-with-having-a-conscience-she-said-to-herself-is-that-it/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

> [“And if there's bad behaviour," Mma Potokwane went on. "If there's bad behaviour, the quickest way of stopping it is to give more love.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/and-if-there-s-bad-behaviour-mma-potokwane-went-on-if-there-s-bad/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

> [“We never realise how transparent we are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/we-never-realise-how-transparent-we-are/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

> [“Has he not got a wife back wherever he comes from? Is there no wife to say, ‘You must not go off and visit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/has-he-not-got-a-wife-back-wherever-he-comes-from-is-there-no-wife-to/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

> [“He looked at her in the darkness, at this woman who was everything to him-mother, Africa, wisdom, understanding, good things to eat, pumpkins, chicken,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/he-looked-at-her-in-the-darkness-at-this-woman-who-was-everything-to/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

> [“It is because you are generous in spirit; and may I be like that; may I become like you—which unrealistic wish, to become the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/it-is-because-you-are-generous-in-spirit-and-may-i-be-like-that-may-i/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

> [“Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni,” she asked, “do you think that our souls grow as we get older?” He did not answer immediately, but when he did,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/mr-j-l-b-matekoni-she-asked-do-you-think-that-our-souls-grow-as-we/)

[Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

[Explore all 628 Alexander McCall Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/)

## More Bleak quotes

> [Single-sex private schools, especially in the middle of nowhere on a bleak hill in County Durham - I don't think they make sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-deacon/single-sex-private-schools-especially-in-the-middle-of-nowhere-on-a/)

[Giles Deacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-deacon/)

> [I wonder whether my bleak-o-meter is set differently from other people's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-arnold/i-wonder-whether-my-bleak-o-meter-is-set-differently-from-other/)

[Andrea Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-arnold/)

> [I felt cheated by the way grown-ups told me that the future of the world was bleak when I became a teenager in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-ridley/i-felt-cheated-by-the-way-grown-ups-told-me-that-the-future-of-the/)

[Matt Ridley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-ridley/)

> [No wonder of it: sheer plod makes plough down sillion Shine, and blue-bleak embers, ah my dear, Fall, gall themselves, and gash gold-vermilion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-manley-hopkins/no-wonder-of-it-sheer-plod-makes-plough-down-sillion-shine-and-blue/)

[Gerard Manley Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-manley-hopkins/)

> [“During the whole of a dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn of the year, when the clouds hung oppressively low in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-allan-poe/during-the-whole-of-a-dull-dark-and-soundless-day-in-the-autumn-of/)

[Edgar Allan Poe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-allan-poe/)

> [T is liberty crowns Britannia's Isle, And makes her barren rocks and her bleak mountains smile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/t-is-liberty-crowns-britannia-s-isle-and-makes-her-barren-rocks-and/)

[Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/)

> [The future looks a bit bleak to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/the-future-looks-a-bit-bleak-to-me/)

[Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/)

> [Nothing that's ever happened has taken away the optimist in me. It's always, "Whatever-let's go to Disneyland." Yes, I have my bleak, tortured-artist moments,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariah-carey/nothing-that-s-ever-happened-has-taken-away-the-optimist-in-me-it-s/)

[Mariah Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariah-carey/)

> [ I think because the show \["Grant MacLaren"\] is essentially a hopeful show. The show says that as bleak as the future is, the one… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-mccormack/i-think-because-the-show-grant-maclaren-is-essentially-a-hopeful-show/)

[Eric McCormack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-mccormack/)

> [In his bleak mercy, Death forever strips The soul of light and memory, rendering blind Our vision, lest surmounted deeps appal, As when on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clark-ashton-smith/in-his-bleak-mercy-death-forever-strips-the-soul-of-light-and-memory/)

[Clark Ashton Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clark-ashton-smith/)

> [Gay life in 1970 was very bleak, compartmentalized. You didn't take it to work. You had to really lead a double life. There were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-kramer/gay-life-in-1970-was-very-bleak-compartmentalized-you-didn-t-take-it/)

[Larry Kramer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-kramer/)

> [“Life, on Hardcore mode, she thought with a twinge of bleak humor. No do-overs. No save files. Harper”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-bellet/life-on-hardcore-mode-she-thought-with-a-twinge-of-bleak-humor-no-do/)

[Annie Bellet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-bellet/)

> [A cold and searching wind drives away all contagion, and nothing can withstand it but what has a virtue in it, and accordingly, whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/a-cold-and-searching-wind-drives-away-all-contagion-and-nothing-can/)

[Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/)

> [“Killing the poorest third is good genetics.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/killing-the-poorest-third-is-good-genetics/)

[Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/)

> [“Wyoming, to Annie, was represented by a blank, bleak space in her imagination. It was a place she could hide. The worst that could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-wilson/wyoming-to-annie-was-represented-by-a-blank-bleak-space-in-her/)

[Kevin Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-wilson/)

[Browse all 335 Bleak quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bleak/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Now the tea began to do its work- as it always did- and the world that only a few minutes previously had seemed so bleak started to seem less so.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Alexander McCall Smith"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/now-the-tea-began-to-do-its-work-as-it-always-did-and-the-world-that/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Bleak"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/now-the-tea-began-to-do-its-work-as-it-always-did-and-the-world-that/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ea/alexander-mccall-smith-372_bleak_now-the-tea-began-to-do-its-work-as-it-a_2348878.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ea/alexander-mccall-smith-372_bleak_now-the-tea-began-to-do-its-work-as-it-a_2348878.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ea/alexander-mccall-smith-372_bleak_now-the-tea-began-to-do-its-work-as-it-a_2348878.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Now the tea began to do its work- as it always did- and the world that only a few minutes previously had…” — Alexander McCall Smith",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Alexander McCall Smith",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Now the tea began to do...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/now-the-tea-began-to-do-its-work-as-it-always-did-and-the-world-that/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/now-the-tea-began-to-do-its-work-as-it-always-did-and-the-world-that/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
