TEA TIME AND ERNEST

In this episode you will hear about Ernest Hemingway, Tea and the wonderful, positive impact the pandemic shutdowns have had on the natural world.  My hope is that we can continue to protect and support the natural world intentionally, instead of simply as a side effect.

Transcript

Tea Time and Ernest

News:  In  season 1 episode 33 I wrote the poem “New Presidents Day” which I sent to the New President (Joe Biden)).  Recently I received a “thank you letter” and in it he wrote: It is time for all Americans to set aside our differences, to try to understand one another, and to strive to make the promise of a just, prosperous, and secure Nation a reality for everyone.

One of the artists I love is Ken Burns and I found his last documentary on Ernest Hemingway very inspiring.  Hemingway used language very powerfully to engage one in the stories he tells.

UNLIKE HEMINGWAY

I have never experienced war

or have been on safaris

to hunt and kill animals

or written a great novel

Instead I sit on the porch

in afternoon shade

watching the birds 

happily discovering seeds

hidden in the grass.

And then that evening ,

we have our near Hemingway experience.

almost midnight

nine feet of muscle

The female alligator

lies silently in tall grass

at the house next door.

A wicked toothy grin

Shiny eyes staring back

waiting for dog snack

to walk past?

We love and respect our alligators,

and have taken away their land.

Carefully we asked her to leave

to walk back into the river.

nothing happens.

Trapper Ray is called

and appears,

It is a one sided affair.

Nooses, ropes, electrical tape

safely immobilized

a calming touch from his hand

on her third eye.

Together they lift her

into the long white box

to drive her away

so she will live another day

in a place far away.

Safety for her and us, we pray.

MUSINGS ON TEA TASTING

The kettle boils

212 degree water

is ready,

now the tea is brewing.

tea from India

steeping in Florida.

Darjeeling Dooteriah estate,

second flush.

Did the tea grower

in the Himalayan hills

envision all the places

around the world,

where the taste and aroma

would start our day?

Now is the moment of truth:

lifting out the golden filter,

the basket of swollen leaves.

leaving bright amber liquid

in the clear glass cup.

Now is the moment of truth:

smelling the musky aroma

sipping the sweet floral taste

with an oak-like finish.

So says the catalogue.

Eventually, I will get it.

I must try again

to experience the taste and aroma 

of the Himalayas.

45 YEARS AGO

I was invited to Assam.

I never made it,

In the rainy season

one could be trapped

for weeks in the mud,

Planes held down,

roads sliding away.

Instead I enjoy their smokey tea,

sitting comfortably dry and cool.

EARL GREY

It’s time for Earl Grey Tea

Charles Gray

a jolly good fellow

Prime Minister from 1830 to 1834

Receive a gift of Chinese tea

that somehow absorbed

Oil of Bergamot

From Italian Calabrian Oranges

Now,

Not only was Charles open minded,

now the 2nd Earl of Grey

is immortalized every afternoon

at tea-time

THE WORLD HAS CHANGED

For a while everyone slowed down

travelled less, focused on essentials

The air became cleaner

noise pollution less

more animals came out,

It is Sunday now,

The emerald grass springs from the ground

there is a barely a sound

almost back in the days of silence surround

For over a year we have lived differently

flora and fauna have responded

Baby animals are stronger, fearless

humans, have ben nourished by nature

we have again seen their presence

as equal partners on planet earth.

Today our technology

has created safe distances

for us to see the wildness

and the wilderness.

effortlessly sitting in our homes,

sipping tea ,

we see places and animals

in microscopic detail

day and night

the beauty and variety

flashes past our eyes

humbling our minds.

Walk on the beach

feel the sand  massaging each toe

Walk in the forest

see the play of sun and shadow.

Walk in the swamp

feel the warm water 

swirling around your legs.

Stroll across the Savannah,

Struggle through thick jungle,

Slide and slip over sand dunes,

Float down the river,

Surf on the waves

Now it is time to protect 

Natures diversity 

so it will be here forever

For future generations.

©MartinStrasmore2021

Beach Walk

sand stretching toes

digging in

gentle lapping waves

night crown heron

Bob the builder