"Tea with Thee"

3/2/10 A cup of hot tea (cuppa)   is the ideal accompaniment to my morning routine. Sally B. asked me what would be a good tea? WOW, that’s a hard question----there are so many good choices but each tea lover would probably give a different answer. Black loose tea is usually my preference---a good hearty assam with real sugar and a drop of milk. No cream for me, it masks the flavor. Most teas are a good blend. Just don’t oversteep them. Add more tea, not longer steeping time, otherwise your “cuppa” can be “bittah.” For my recent cold winter mornings I have enjoyed a good Irish Breakfast Tea----Bewley’s, Barry’s or Lyon’s---all good, robust, black tea blends. I probably lean toward Bewley’s because of the memory it evokes---Grafton Street, 1993. Porridge for me---full Irish b’fast for Larry---both served with a pot of their signature tea. Not sure why, but I remember the sign above the entry of this famous Dublin establishment. It said Bewley’s Oriental Café, though there was nothing oriental about it---just a cafeteria-like line, small tables and a bustling atmosphere. Knowing my affinity for their tea, Josh brought me some back from his last trip there. Yum-m-m-m!

There’s just something about starting my day with my fingers wrapped around my warm teacup---most mugs are too big---a devotional book on the chair arm and my Bible open on my lap (the original laptop) that opens my eyes to infinite possibilities. “Tea with Thee.” The best “routine” morning times are like my tea---steeped just right, not rushed. An ordinary cup of tea, my daily Jesus Calling reading, simple scripture verses at my fingertips----ordinary beginnings can make a day extraordinary.

Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee. (Psalm 143:8)

Q & A

2/25/09 You asked---I answered.
Church? First Evangelical---when he was 4, Josh called it “first of the van” and would lament the times he had to sit in the cemetery (sanctuary) maybe b/c he had to be quiet in there.
Favorite song for dancing/bopping---

“Ain’t too Proud to Beg” (Temptations) “I Can’t Help Myself” (Four Tops) I guarantee that if I hear those songs I start dancing even if it’s at “That Place on 98” near Apalachicola. Just ask embarrassed Larry.
Favorite Tea? Hard to narrow---I like a good assam---more of a black tea person than green tea. PG Tips (England) Red Rose (Canada) Bewley’s (Ireland) are in pantry now. Also love Jordan Pond tea (Maine) but I’m out, anyone going to the northeast??
Favorite book? Even harder to narrow but Keeper of the Bees, a real oldie (1925) by Gene Stratton-Porter stands out as a good one few folks have read. More recently read, Same Kind of Different as Me (Hall & Moore) and Shards of Shell, by “my” Michèle Phoenix.
Memorable Gift? Attending a mid-town home tour (1996) with Josh, I saw a French Limoges type porcelain box which had books on it and a Wordsworth sonnet quote---Larry & I had just been to WW’s home in Grasmere (Lake District in England) I loved it---from a distance---as it sat on an antique breakfront in one of the homes. I assume I mentioned it to Josh. A week later on my 50th birthday, I opened the beautifully wrapped Babcock’s gift from Larry and there it was! I was beside myself!! My mother was there and commented, “he probably paid $50 for that”---my thought was, I bet he wished that was all he paid. It’s still a gift I treasure. Diane surprising me on my 40th was a memorable “gift” as well.
Recent Memory? I have no recent memory---or not much anyway.
Big Surprise? “Grandmother” shower for me that I did not want---it was to be the month after Mother died, I didn’t want hoopla for me---kids needed the “stuff” not me---the surprise was that my dear friends brought the expectant parents & other grandparents from Texas along with my entire family from Kentucky to surprise me because I needed a “lift”---they showered me with love and I’ll never forget it. I’m crying just remembering the joy.
Travel Destination? For years, England was always the answer---these days home “feels so good” though I wouldn’t mind going to Germany so I could meet Michèle, whose faith and hope on her MacJourney keeps me hopeful.

Harder question but really the most important one (compilation of several) How do you keep on keeping on? It’s all about Him! I keep seeking His face. When I seek His face (Psalm 27:8) my heart is transformed and when my countenance reflects His peace it’s real, even if the tears are streaming.

As surgeries kept being put off, as new doctors bowed out and a team was being sought, I was faced with weeks of waiting. At the time, 4-6 more weeks seemed like a long time. But oh how I have needed that time both practically--- to deal with Larry’s folks and our dear neighbors and now my own dad’s diagnosis--- and emotionally and spiritually. I have needed time with Jesus.

Quiet times have been times of lingering---just being still in the Lord’s presence. Calming comes to mind. Meditation might begin in the early part of the day and then continue or be “refined” by the end of the day. Sometimes He brings affirmation of something learned at His feet through a friend’s comment, card, or e-mail.

One thing I know for sure---these times have been necessary for me to see my life with MAC, in the light of God’s goodness and truth. It has been a time of preparation for the spiritual battles that I encounter and even those yet to come. Some days l-o-n-g times with Him are NECESSARY (in all caps, for emphasis) to even hold my head up---but that’s when He becomes my shield and the lifter up of my head. (Psalm 3:3) It’s why I have never had to ask why?---that doesn’t matter, God’s glory does.