Tea in the Garden

    

                                       Painting by Dorothy Mundell...her own farm flower garden.

Two of the best things in life are tea and friends. This morning was a perfect example of an exquisite morning with both. It might be farfetched to call my deck a garden, but it is a garden to me. Years ago we had a vegetable garden for a while but never flowers. I grew up in a household where my dad was a tyrant about having any flowers or ornaments in the yard! Grass was meant for cutting, should  be evenly trimmed, and needed no interruptions to the mower.  When I had my own yard, I was busy rearing boys instead of raising blooms. I did keep pots on the deck though out of the way of soccer balls, imaginary wars with guns and hostlers, Tonka dozers through sand pits, and tree house traffic.

The weather is flawless this week for being outside. I took the chance to have a little tea party. Oh, the joy of sharing tea and good weather! Tastes were equally divided between hot tea and iced tea, but there was something for everyone. There was cinnamon orange, tropical, chocolate, and plain tea. Snacks were little cheesecakes, a breakfast cookie, chocolate chip, and a raspberry bar. But the real sweetness of the morning was seeing people relax, laugh, and enjoy themselves.

In the afternoon a couple brought burgers and we added chips, cookies, and of course, more tea. We caught up on their news. After lunch and a near naptime, they left and the day wound down. Tea and friends, all day long…ideal assets for a May day.