High Tea

One of my favorite memories from a trip to Ireland is the High Tea served in our hotel lobby. Each afternoon I gathered with two or three women and enjoyed tea and scones with jam. I'm not sure if it was the "proper way" to have tea each afternoon or if it was a production done especially for tourists, but we loved it. There's something almost luxerious about sipping tea and gently dabbing jam on a scone while a pianist plays lovely background music. (By the way, "lovely" is a word I picked up from a wonderful Dubliner.)

I felt the same way when we visited Scotland and had dinner at the home of a college friend and his Scottish wife. After a wonderful meal was had and their daughter was rocked to sleep, Rhona put the kettle on and we had tea. Their obvious ritual of it was striking - taking time to let the day's worries slide away as they prepared and drank their tea, all the while talking with one another and enjoying the peacefulness of the evening. Perhaps that's something all of us could use a bit more of in our busy lives.

So, in honor of Dave being in the UK - the kids and I had tea Sunday afternoon. Sophie and I prepared the scones and we all gathered on the patio at 3:30. For their credit, they all tried the tea, but not a one finished their cup. I probably would have finished the pot off by myself if Linda, our next-door-neighbor, hadn't stopped by. So - there you go - the tea helped me take an hour or more on Sunday and just relax on the patio with a neighbor... can't ask for more than that.