The Importance of Tea (Part VI)

“Safetea”

The first day of autumn blew in on a strong wind complete with rain and a stormy sea. It also coincided with the Tour de Victoria, which happened to roll past my window en route, one hopes, to someplace warm and dry. At midday it occurred to me that I was missing an opportunity to see a bunch of crazy people cycle by, so I carried my tea tumbler full of Persian Apple to the Ocean Room and settled on the sofa to watch the race for a bit.

I love wild water. The sea at its feistiest is a momentous sight. Grey-green waves laced with foam, pounding the beach right across the street. Rain coming sideways, driven by the same wind that has the trees dancing to its music. Part of me yearns to go out in it, to experience firsthand the smells, the sounds, the sights of Nature doing her darndest to remind us that, ultimately, she rules and we’ll just have to work with it.

Problem is, much as I long to stand in the teeth of it, those teeth are cold, wet and sharp. Only a fool would willingly succumb to that longing. Or, in the case of racing cyclists, a number of fools.

Nope, a sensible person curls up in a warm room with a steady supply of tea on the steep and watches the show from a safe haven.

Yes, I am immensely grateful that I have that warm, safe haven. I can afford to rhapsodize about stormy weather because I have the good fortune to be sheltered from it.

The vibe indoors was no doubt influenced by the energy outdoors; I had real trouble wanting to write, let alone knowing what to write. I spent most of the morning reading over things, trying to get a bead on something that would trickle into flow. I get rattled and restless when the wind is up – a reminder that I, too, am a creature of Nature and susceptible to the same energy patterns as everything else on the planet. It’s a harder fight on that sort of day, to be content, to be creative, even to be optimistic. So it was good for me to take my tea into the OR and observe the conditions from a happy place. It made me grateful and even a bit creative, ’cause that’s when I saw the paradox of heinous outside, peaceful inside, and the importance of tea in the situation. I grabbed the Canon, set up the shot and hit the button.

Instant post.

Life is good.