Creating Memories With Tea

Welcome to another edition of Tea On Tuesday. I’d like to talk about how easy it is to use tea as a tool to create some very special memories for you and your loved ones. Tea has a way of helping you relax and unwind, unlike coffee which jazzes you up. A good tea experience should help calm your nerves, and allow you to feel more comfortable, relaxed and ready to open your heart with whoever you share the experience with. Drink coffee if you want to study for a test, go skiing or spend the day shopping because it will energize you. But when you’re ready for some good conversation, tea is the way to go. The act of breathing deeply the enticing aroma of a good quality tea will have an instant soothing effect no matter what mood you’re in. And once you’ve taken that first lucious sip, you’ll find that good conversation just seems to flow naturally.

Most of my friends have their special tea memories they can tell you about. Just ask someone, and you’ll see a smile creep across their face as they begin to relive those special moments they’ve experience with loved ones over a hot cup of tea. My first memory of tea as a child growing up was coming home from school each day. Our baby sitter, a dear older neighbor, welcomed us with tea and soda crackers served with sugar cubes of course. My sister and I felt so special to be greeted in such a way as we shared the experiences of our school day together. Of course through the years I’ve added many more tea memories. My mother, sisters and I love to frequent a good tea room. We go there to hide from the rest of the world, to giggle and talk about things that no one else would ever understand.

One of the things I love most about tea is it’s ageless appeal. I have found a way to feel perfectly comfortable visiting with a little old lady, a child, a college age student, and of course my best girlfriends. One of the first things my 4 year old grand daughter wants to experience when she comes to visit Grandma is tea in the tea room. I’ll pour her a cup of Tutti Fruiti Herbal Tea, and serve it with cheese, crackers, and a few grapes. May I tell you there is nothing in the world more special to me than sitting there listening to her share some pretty goofy stories while she has my undivided attention at the tea table. She is always on her very best behavior, and has the utmost respect for our ritual.

There are so many opportunities to connect with people each day. But our society seems so busy, it’s hard to know where or how to connect anymore. May I suggest learning how to serve a decent cup of tea in a hospitaible fashion. It only takes a few moments to prepare tea. I may not always have time to prepare a special meal and have guests over for dinner. But the tea kettle is always on at my house, and there are scone mixes ready to be mixed and popped into the oven at a moments notice. I have a selection of fragrant teas for my guests to choose from while waiting for the water to boil. I also let my guests select one of the many delicate teacups I have collected. Men prefer to drink their tea in a sturdy, if not ugly mug. So I keep a few of those around as well.

Tea food can be simple or elegant. A cup of soup, a little salad, a quiche, or perhaps just some fresh fruit. A nice little tea cookie or fresh scone with jam or cream is an extra special touch. And when you start to realize just how easy it is to bless someone with this lovely experience, you’ll find more and more ways of delighting your friends by serving tea in special and unique ways. I even took my tea service on vacation with me last year and served tea to my sisters on a table overlooking the beach. Talk about a memory! Use tea to welcome a new neighbor to the community, take a tea party in a basket to someone in the hospital, have a good, long overdue chat with your best girlfriend, host a birthday party, or a bridal shower. There are so many ways to bring this experience into your own life. I know life gets busy and connecting with friends and having good communication is tough now days. But with the smallest amount of preparation, you will find that tea opens the door for you to connect with others in a way you never thought possible.

I hope you will use some of my ideas and come up with a few of your own. Let me know how it goes. Wouldn’t it be great if we could lay aside all the cell phones and lap tops for just one day, and come together face to face and visit over a nice cup of tea?

Blessings-

Tea Lady Darla