I struggled to write this review for a few weeks now but I wanted to reach out and say this Starbucks really met my needs on my visit.
I'll start out by saying I was adopted by my dad, Don, and never knew anything about my biological dad. He died in 1994, when I was 12, and I never knew him. In this epoch of social media, my friends list grew to include my paternal grandma Judith on Facebook and we've stayed connected the last decade. I was born in Grand Junction and my parents just retired, and moved back. My parents bought their house in GJ in June and have been unpacking and reacquainting with the city in which they fell in love ("Our first date was at that China Buffet," my mom pointed out on the ride home from the airport). When my mom knew I had a flight booked, she asked if I wanted to see Judith. My feelings were complicated, and I agreed. My mom works in the school district so my dad offered to go with me (no car) if Judith wanted to pick us up or meet us somewhere walkable. My dad suggested Starbucks after lunch, and this location was our meet point.
A woman who I'd never met but shared DNA with, and the man who raised me from the age of 3 but didn't share DNA with.
Starbucks created a very easy location, tailored to this task. Generic enough to know your way around, a menu small enough to offer something to everyone (decaf, fruity teas, focusing caffeine, a treat to share), a layout conducive to conversations, a timeless quality that latecomers can still pull a chair,accessible restrooms, free refills for gold members. And a gentle soundtrack in the background, with non-competing art and subtle merchandising, to keep your eyes visually occupied when there's a hard conversation happening.
We spent about 3 hours in this Starbucks forging a family bond with someone who didn't know me, didn't believe I was family, questioned motives decades ago, and who I only knew through Facebook. I learned important things about my biological dad. After school got out, my mom drove over and met us. My mom emphasized she never kept me from him, but wanted me to have insurance on Don's military plan, which is the reason she pushed for the adoption. My grandma conceded both, "There were a lot of things I didn't know about [him]," and "I can see a resemblance, I knew you were family the first time I saw a picture of you." She cried at the table over his death.
So thank you to Starbucks in Grand Junction, thank you Starbucks at 13th and North. It was exactly what we needed for our family.
(And I kept track of songs they were playing because I felt so emotional the whole time I was there. I'll share the playlist on Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/playlist/65niVftmbXFuJeo6N4fuqI?si=cEer9vluTRqm5Losc1kHCA ....Playlist is called "this".)
"The only problem that I got with the club
Is how you're severed from the people who watched you grow up
When you're a member go on your great adventure again
And we'll be waiting at the end." - The Love Club, Lorde
"It was the wicked and wild wind
Blew down the doors to let me in
Shattered windows and the sound of drums
People couldn't believe what I'd become" - Vida la Vida, Coldplay read more