Beauty 365 … Stories of Love and Life for Everyday

Are you a tea drinker? Tea drinking, I believe, is quite a serious business for some. I have one friend who inspects my tea cups by holding them to the light before choosing her desired receptacle, and is horrified when I can’t produce a tea pot. And I have memories of my parents ‘dying’ for a cup of tea if they had gone more than a few hours without one. They craved it to ‘bring body and soul together again’!

I've taken to tea drinking rather later in life. And recently I have gotten into herbal teas. Believing what I read about their health benefits, I am trying to push past my conclusion that herbal teas are strong on promise with their gorgeous aroma, but are weak on flavour. My current preference is spiced apple Camomile. The smell is gorgeous, and the flavour passable if I think about other pleasant things while I’m drinking it!

But the aesthetics of tea do appeal to me and yesterday it was confirmed. The pleasure of tea is certainly heightened by the cup from which it is drunk and the company with which it is taken.

Yesterday two of my daughters hosted a bridal shower at our home for our dear friend who is soon to be married. The house was overrun with flowers, candles and all things pretty. The table was covered with delicate nibbles, cupcakes and tarts, and tea was drunk from pretty floral tea cups with matching saucers.

What a very happy occasion! We welcomed exactly twenty gorgeous women, (ticking social distancing boxes) four of whom brought along their newborn babies! Oh, I was in heaven! We played party games by the open fire and the volume turned up as the afternoon progressed.

And the tea? Well, I had the best cup of tea I have ever drunk, or will be likely ever likely to drink, I think. We toasted Beck with our tea cups and wished her well as she journeys from Miss to Mrs.

I'm sure married life will suit her, down to a T.