Tea and community

Laurie is an assistant in Cana house in Eythorne. Here, she reflects on the role of tea in L'Arche, community and world peace: 
"A lot can be said about a cup of tea. Since coming to England in May from Canada, I have shared more cups of tea then at any other time in my life.
I am learning a lot about the power of a cup of tea. Tea brings people together. It calms, soothes and provides comfort at the end of a day and  provides a consistent, warming start to each morning (though personally  i still need to drink at least 2 cups of coffee to get going in the morning!). When everything else seems unclear, there is a profound kind of certainty that can be found in a cup of tea. I know that no matter how many mistakes I have made in the day, no matter how tired or distracted I am, if I put a tea bag in a cup and add hot water, it will become a tasty beverage! 
Beyond the comfort and ordinariness of tea, I have also discovered that tea has magical powers. When interpersonal conflicts arise, nothing diffuses the situation like a nice cup of tea. When someone is feeling the sadness of loss, or feeling burdened by life, nothing soothes like a hot cup of tea. When I am lost for words but long to be friendly, nothing welcomes like tea. One sugar, two, perhaps even three or none at all? Milk? Cream? A bit of lemon? When someone knows how you like your cup of tea, it feels like they know you, like they understand you.
I began to feel like I was at home in Cana when I knew how to prepare the perfect cup of tea for each of my house mates: John drinks his tea with Soy milk and as much sugar as he can get, Geoffrey and Sal prefer their tea with just milk, Sarah likes honey in her peppermint tea, Gosia likes Lady Gray with a slice of lemon, green tea is Kasia's favourite and so on.
In L'Arche Kent, it is nearly guaranteed that wherever two or three are gathered, there is tea. There is something incredibly unifying in this very simple gesture. Beyond all the differences that could separate us, our cultures, our faiths, our abilities, our ages, our genders and perspectives we can all come together over a cup of tea. We don't have to drink the same cup of tea, just so long as we drink together. I am convinced that we can build friendships, find community (communi-tea!!) and journey clumsily towards peace, one cup at a time."
Laurie Carnduff
Cana house
L'Arche Kent

Comments

Gillian said…
This is oh so true! Thanks Laurie: ))
28 January 2011 at 21:18
Unknown said…
Welcome to England!
29 January 2011 at 14:39
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