One of my fondest memories was having hot tea with my grandmother. She didn’t care for iced tea. She said it made no sense to take perfectly good hot tea, chill it, put sugar in to sweeten it and then put in lemon to make it sour. No, just hot tea with a spoon of sugar and a bit of cream was what she liked, and I liked it, too.
She had a built-in wall cabinet filled with her china and other pretty dishes. There was an ample selection of teacups, saucers, and tea pots. I loved to stand in front of the colorful fancy dishes and try to decide which cup I wanted to use next. It didn’t matter that I was just a little snotty nosed kid – she let me pick the cup I wanted to use. After selecting my cup, I set it on the round dining room table along with the cups already chosen by others sharing our teatime. Soon, a pot of hot tea sat on the table along with the sugar bowl and creamer filled with cream. She poured tea into the cups and then we each added a spoonful (or two or three) of sugar along with cream. The hot tea was good, but the time spent with my grandmother and those around the table was priceless.
Having hot tea with my grandmother has stuck with me all these years. For one thing, it has instilled in me a love for hot tea – especially when it is shared with people I love. All my grandkids have shared hot tea with me. I have two teacup cabinets and numerous other teacups for them to select from, and believe me, I have a plethora!
My littlest granddaughter is the biggest fan of sharing hot tea. When she comes to the house for any length of time, she often asks if we can have a tea party. She goes to one of the cabinets and picks out a teacup for me saying it’s my favorite, and then she picks one for her. Then we have a tea party. Sometimes her dolls join us, complete with their own miniature teacups, teapot, cream and sugar. She pours their tea, then after a sufficient amount of time has passed, she drinks it so she can pour them another cup.
My grandmother never seemed to cringe when little hands reached into her cabinet. I don’t ever remember her chiding me or even telling me to be careful. She never said, “I’ll get it for you.” Instead, she let us little kids open the cabinet and get our teacups or fancy plates ourselves. Little did I know that my grandmother taught me some lessons in the process. It was not about “things,” it was about family and friendship. Her philosophy was to use those special treasures to make lasting memories. That is the lesson I want to leave my kids and grandkids. They are more valuable than any breakable piece of china. I hope to continue making memories over a cup of hot tea.
