Since the First World War it has been an essential part of every British soldiers basic military training to be able to make themselves a hot beverage when out in the field. Commonly referred to as ‘a brew’ it usually means a cup of tea, although it can also be coffee, Bovril or hot chocolate.
But why do we squaddies hold the humble cuppa with such high esteem. Well, besides the obvious hit of warmth & rehydration when you are cold, wet & holed-up in some godforsaken part of the planet, hearing the words ‘Right lads & lasses, get a f**king brew on..’ can literally be a morale-boosting lifesaver. Those few minutes of down time indicates a brief interlude in whatever shenanigans you might be involved with, offering you a moment to stop, sit & take stock. It is perhaps the closest thing to mindfulness in the military that you will ever get.
As a former British soldier myself (many eons ago I might add) the GAFBO tradition is still a major thing for me & something that I constantly harp on about. In a world where we are obsessed with being mentally & physically on the go every minute of the day, sometimes just cracking out the brew-kit & just taking 5 minutes to think things over, is not a bad thing to do. You should give it a go sometime…
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