To Sun Tea or Not to Sun Tea?

I remember my grandma learning about making tea in the sun that would become iced tea later that day. No one got sick (as far as we knew) but science tells us otherwise, especially when you use just regular ol' tap water. The way the sun makes things grow in our gardens is the same way that it can make bacteria grow in water.

Now, as someone who is currently on the path of connecting deeply with the element of fire, the idea of sun tea seems like a good idea but I also don't want to make myself or anyone else sick. What to do? Here are some tips on still making some summer sun tea with the sun's energy and lowering the chances of getting sick from it:

• Make sure that the vessel you use for your sun tea is clean and sanitized right before you use it. Then, dry it off with paper towels (not the dish towel that's been hanging on your cabinet for days);

• Don't use any sugar before steeping in the sun;

• Don't use straight tap water. Instead, use distilled or boil your water beforehand (letting it cool before pouring into your jar);

• Keep the steeping time short - no longer than 4 hours;

• And, lastly, refrigerate it promptly and drink it within 24 hours.

This still doesn't guarantee that those nasty bacteria won't grow and cause some GI problems but doing these steps will lower the chances! There's also an alternative to sun tea -- moon tea! Less chances of those nasty bugs growing in your tea! Just make your tea with room temp water and leave out in the moonlight overnight.

Enjoy the summer sun and charge yourself in it responsibly!