So Glad You Could Join Me For Tea and a Chat

[caption id="attachment_1675" align="aligncenter" width="225"] Sugar, Mint or lemon?[/caption]

Did you notice I'm wearing the apron my former English teacher gave me at one of my last afternoon teas?  Thanks Miss Kaftan.

Now do come in,  sit down on the sofa out here on the porch

or maybe you'd prefer to sit in a rocker.

Just make yourself comfortable.

Modern life can keep us so on the go and it's good to be on the go, it really is,  but not every minute!  We  are so wise to recognize our need for regular pauses in our day.  Some people never take time for themselves, poor things.  We're enriched when we pause to take time for intellectual reflection.  Our days feel  brighter when we include others - sharing, exercising courtesy and cultivating friendships.  We grow in  peace and hope when we take time to reflect on our spiritual roots, and we're  refreshed  when we pause from our busy work  to do a little daydreaming or to focus on the beauty that's all around us.

Beauty like a  birdie at the window feeder...

Beauty like a lovely flower...

Beauty like the nature outside our window.

It's so nice you could join me today.  We're both taking a break from the hustle and bustle of life.  What have you been doing today?  Maybe you'll leave a comment at the end of this post and tell me about your day.  I'd like that.  Can I offer you a chicken croissant?

Don't worry about the calories.  You have to eat, don't you?

I was in the mood to do a little baking today.  I'm  always searching for good scone recipes and today I found two.  Both recipes came from a book by Tricia Foley called Having Tea  and here it is.

I made Buttermilk scones and Cream scones. Both turned out quite nicely.  I cut back on the salt a bit, but other than that Tricia's recipes were the best I've found so far.  Here are the ingredients for both recipes:

Buttermilk Scones

1 and 3/4 cups of all purpose flour, 1 tsp. sugar, 3/4 tsp. salt, 2 tsp. baking powder, 1/2 tsp. baking soda, 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, approximately 3/4 cup buttermilk

Cream Scones

2 cups all purpose flour, 2 tsp. sugar, 3/4 tsp. salt, 1 tablespoon baking powder, 1 cup heavy cream

The buttermilk scones bake at 450 degrees F for 8 to 10 minutes

The cream scones bake at 425 degrees F for 8 to 10 minutes

For both recipes you mix the dry ingredients, cut in the butter or liquid till a soft dough forms, then roll out on a floured board to the thickness of 3/4 to 1 inch.  Cut dough with a sharp 2 inch round cookie cutter,  bake.

AND YOU HAVE SCONES!

Please, have one.  Have two!  I made plenty.  Add a little Raspberry jam

and Devon cream.

When you serve scones at tea, adding  jam and Devon cream or whipping cream, it's rightly called a CREAM TEA.  If you bake a batch of scones, leftovers can be frozen, and at a moment's notice you can enjoy a cream tea yourself or delight any friend who pops in unexpectedly.    Of course, when was the last time you experienced drop-in company?  Sadly, the days of visiting seem to be a thing of the past. People today are too busy for such civilized pleasures.  Not me!  I am the champion of old world pleasures lost to modern times - Hosting afternoon teas, Creating handwritten letters, Calling ahead to pay a visit to a friend or relative.  Such things as these add a gracious element to life, an element that  doesn't cost much money (if any at all), but rewards us with  a certain joy which no amount of money can buy.

Think how you would delight a friend if you popped over to their home bearing a pot of flowers or a basket of strawberries.  That's exactly what my friend Joni brought me on her last visit.

 This is Joni.  She is one of my intelligent friends who not only takes time for herself,  focusing on her many blessings, but she also makes time for others, doing nice things for them.  That's a winning combination. I'm so lucky to have Joni as a friend.  I hope you have friends like Joni too,  and  I hope you are a good friend to others, making time for them.

Maybe tomorrow you'll mix up a few pitchers of ice tea,

call a friend or two, and invite them over

or

buy a pot of flowers

or

a cake

and go visiting.  Call ahead and visit a friend or relative showering them with your time and appreciation.  Sharing doubles the joy, and taking this time out in your day is well worth the effort.  But in between visits with others remember to take time for yourself - time to dream, time to putter, time to exercise your creativity, time to relax.  It's so good for your health and it's so good for your spirit.

And speaking of spirit, you can always enjoy tea time with God.  There's even a book to help you with that. and here it is.

This book is a Quiet Moments with God  devotional, published by Honor books.  If you need a little company and no one is available why not share your teatime break  with God.  This book will help.

I remember seeing an old film called The Ghost and Mrs. Muir way back when.  I loved this film and wished  I too had a friendly ghost who shared my old 1853 house, a ghost I could talk to and gain inspiration from  -  and then it hit me!  I do have my very own friendly ghost and so do you.  It's a ghost , who though invisible, is with us all the time.  It is a very special ghost too.  It is the HOLY GHOST!

Yes, I'm a spiritual person, aren't you?   So why shouldn't we  invite the Holy Ghost to tea now and then just as we would invite other friends?  There's an idea!  (BIG SMILE)  And these great ideas  do not come to us unless we  take time from our busy routines to pause and relax and ponder.

So, I'm very glad you stopped by for tea and this chat.  I was having fun with my birdies and  baking , but sharing with you made my fun even better because... you know...

Sharing doubles the joy!

So drop by again, and until then, be sure to take time out of your days to dream, to share, and to BE!

Like my Boston University tee shirt  says

B U

(That's short for Be You!)