"I realized that tea does not even have taste
but rather just an effect like the wind"
James Norwood Pratt

Communi"tea" Teas By Marie Younkin-Waldman

Last time we talked about preparing holiday teas and some ways that you can share and connect with your friends. Today I'm going to discuss community teas and how you can bring the concept of the tea ritual into your community.

The Tea Tradition

The Chinese first introduced the idea of drinking tea thousands of years ago after a tea leaf had drifted into Emperor Shen Nung's boiled water and he found out that he liked the taste. A tradition was born! The tea-drinking concept was carried across the continent to Europe and England in the seventeenth century. In England Lady Bedford could not make it to dinnertime in the early nineteenth century so she developed a habit of taking tea and cakes in her room in the late afternoon. She soon shared this afternoon tea ritual with her friends. And of course we in America have followed in the tradition of our English forebears. Now we see that the custom of drinking tea is spreading and there are more tearooms around as well as tea is becoming more available in coffee shops. People are finding that taking the time to sit down and enjoy a soothing cup of tea is a wonderful calming way to insert that "ten minutes for yourself" into their days.

Tea Rituals in the Community

It is time to introduce the concept of the tea ritual to the community at large. Who said that tea is only to be enjoyed by the privileged classes? Tea is more affordable than it was in the nineteenth century and now everyone who is human can benefit from the physical and psychological effects of putting tea into their lives. The tea ritual is for everyone just as relaxing and connecting with each other is for everyone. So are the special amenities and customs that accompany the tea ritual. We all want to be more considerate of each other and to help make this a more pleasant world.

Ideas for Communi-Teas

Here are some of the ideas I am trying and perhaps you can use them to trigger more ideas of your own in your communities. Last year I organized a tea for the 8th graders of a local middle school in a nearby bed and breakfast. We had a tea committee, "The Tea Ladies" that consisted of teachers and school staff, friends, community leaders and those just plain interested in wanting to help. We were able to secure a little funding from the School Youth Task Force but the majority of our supplies came from donations from businesses in the communities and the tea ladies provided the beautiful teacups, tea pots and linens. High School musicians played chamber music in the background.

The girls came totally unaware of what to expect. "What do we do with these," they asked about the pretty linen napkins. Tea ladies waited on the tables and helped the students with their questions and their P's and Q's. Then I gave a talk and shared information with the students about beauty, connecting and the importance of manners and consideration in their lives. I stressed the assets to their resumes and to job related issues such as having luncheon interviews and feeling confident about what to do. We Tea Ladies wanted to make a fuss over the girls and to "honor" them so to speak so that they would feel good about themselves as adolescents. To this day I hear comments about what a special day that was for those students.

Another way to help young people in your community is to pack a "Tea Basket" filled with everything you need to set up a little tea for two such as: electric kettle, tea cups, tea pot, linens, sugar, sweets etc. and perhaps some flowers or decorations and to take it into the school where you volunteer to work with a student on a periodic basis. Most communities have mentor programs that are very important to help students in need. Come to think of it you can have these tea baskets at the ready to take anywhere an occasion arises such as a visit to a shut-in or a lonely relative. What a nice warm way to connect with someone.

Benefits and Fund Raisers

The Jonnycake Center

At the moment I am planning a tea in a local coffeehouse that we will transform into an English tearoom by the time we have finished with it. The tea is a benefit for a local nonprofit called The Jonnycake Center that helps provide food, clothing and resources to people who are in need. Again the volunteer "Tea Ladies" are in full gear and we have added the Director of the Center and the husband and wife co-owners of the" Ecclectibles" coffeehouse (that will be a tearoom soon!) to our group. We shall also solicit local businesses to contribute to the Jonnycake as well as sell tickets for the tea so that we can meet our goal to contribute to the Center.

The Big Sisters of Rhode Island

Another project I am setting up is a tea for a group of young people in the city of Providence called "The Big-Little Sisters of Rhode Island. With the help of the Alan Shawn Feinstein Community Program at Johnson and Wales University Culinary Arts Program we will offer a tea for the girls this spring in April. Johnson and Wales will produce the tea itself and their culinary arts students will help to serve the girls. The "Little Sisters" will be treated to a lovely environment and an opportunity to feel special and to share and connect with their "Big Sisters". I will present a program for them to help them learn a little about beauty and some etiquette that can be helpful to them in the future. We also plan to have some special favors such as pretty tea cups for the girls to take home that perhaps they will use by themselves, with family or with friends and to produce beautiful moments for themselves.

So these are just a few ideas to get you started in your own communities to share the "tea" concept with others, some of which may never have experienced this lovely ritual. The idea behind the ritual of tea is to share the spirit, to connect with one another and to make sure we keep beauty in our lives on a regular basis. We who love the tea ritual ourselves can have so much fun introducing that ritual and sharing it with others.

Marie Younkin-Waldman 3/2/02 teawithmarie@cox.net (401) 789-4658
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