Afternoon Tea

My daughter and I were invited to attend a really cool event Sunday:  an afternoon tea party! 

My darling 4 yr old was thrilled!  My mother had clued me in that an invitation was in the mail, so before we even received the official “please come”, my little princess and I went shopping for her dress.  We ended up with a gorgeous, frilly confection:  Empire waist dress, with eggplant purple velvet bodice & bolero jacket, a skirt in cream-colored taffeta with a tulle overlay embroidered with bouquets of pansies.  Complete the ensemble with textured cream tights, little black Mary Jane dress shoes, and a bright green bow in that enviable mass of dark blonde hair, and you have one adorable little girl (if I do say so)!  And this was WEEKS ahead of schedule. 

Over the next couple of weeks the tea party was a frequent topic of conversation:

“Mommy, when is the tea party?”

“The tea party is in two weeks, Sweet Pea.”

“Mommy, am I going to wear a pretty dress?”

“Yes, Baby.  You’re going to wear the new one with the purple flowers on the skirt.”

“Oh, yeah...  Mommy?”

“Yes, Baby?”

“Does my dolly get to come?”

“Yes, she does.  Do you know which one you’re going to take?”

“I’m taking Rebecca.  She has a party dress, and I’m going to brush her hair.  You can’t brush her hair with a normal hair brush, Mommy.  You have to use the special comb that came with her, because you don’t want her hair to……”

And on, and on, and on…  J  

So!  The big day finally arrived.  My darling girl was scrubbed ‘til her cheeks shone & her hair brushed to a beautiful shine.  Her dress was steamed free of wrinkles, her shoes wiped clean of any dirt/dust/salt (February, remember. J ), & tights free of any snags.  Everything was in place to make sure my princess looked perfect!   She was all set!

Mommy, however, was another story entirely.  My little Bee was not the only one who was excited about a formal tea party; so was Mommy. 

You see, I had never been to a formal tea party; not a REAL one.  Oh, I’ve been to “tea” before.  In fact, a gal pal from India and I used to meet every afternoon at 3pm and take 15 minutes for “tea” at work.  Good tea, good company, and 15 minutes of girl chat make for a very pleasant rest of the afternoon.  But a quick cup of tea in an office break room in no way compares to the lovely picture of formal perfection this afternoon promised to be!  

I envisioned a beautiful long table with perfect linens, gleaming china tea cups on matching saucers.   Flowers would be arranged in a crystal vase by a window streaming with afternoon sunlight that would make perfect little rainbows as it diffused through the facets of the vase.  Would there be music?  There would be yummy treats, to be sure, but what sort?   Ladies and little girls that I know and love dearly would be seated around the beautiful table, enjoying an event that has been enjoyed by ladies and little girls for generations; a tiny snippet of history that is a dying art form & TOTALLY a thing that only women would understand. 

But the truth of the matter was, I really didn’t know what to expect.  What if I don’t pay attention and knock over the teapot and ruin the table cloth or break something??  Worse:  What if I break something!!  All the unknowns began to mount, and I found myself suddenly (and ridiculously) a barrel of nerves!  I took a deep breath, and decided I was, in fact, being totally silly.  That didn’t, however, completely dispel the nerves.  Being a performer, I have found that the best way to overcome a case of nerves is to look like you’re not nervous:  it was time to dress the part!   I went to my closet, hoping to find that one perfect outfit.  Oh, my!  After trying on 4 different outfits that were summarily shot down by my darling, and extremely frank, husband, I knew this was going to be a real challenge.  When outfit #5 elicited a, “Wow, Honey… you really just don’t have any good dress clothes, do you?”  I began to have heart palpitations!   I made an executive decision:  Red boat-neck shirt, with ¾ sleeves, black & white check, straight, ankle-length check skirt, and black sling-back heels.  DONE! 

We went to tea, baby-dolls in tow, and had a MARVELOUS time!  The atmosphere was everything I had hoped for and more.  How completely beautiful!  There was the long table with the beautiful linens; there was the sparkling china in an Old Country Rose pattern.  The house was warm, and the rich wood accents made it ever so cozy in the grand space.  Tiers of tiny sandwiches and petit fours added to the lovely colors on the table, and whole house smelled of freshly baked treats and fresh-brewed tea.    Being with the ladies and the little ladies, I realized I had no reason to have been the least bit nervous.  It was the most perfect afternoon tea I could ever have imagined, and a wonderful time was had by all.

My dearest angel girl and I went home, she went to bed.  I dropped my heels on the floor by the dining table, and calmly went to my room to right the insane mess I had created trying to find the perfect outfit.   

In the morning I woke up, and began to get ready for work.  When I got out of the shower, the sun was just rising, sun beginning to stream through my dining room window.  I caught a glance of my shoes as I walked through, stopped dead in my tracks, and began to laugh:  There they sat, exactly where I had left them.  Two beautiful shoes in identical sling-back styles:  one black, one brown.   Just my luck!

I hope no one noticed, but if they did, who cares.  It was a great day!