Thoughts from a Bucks volunteer

We had another lovely tea party this month visiting Lynn and Dennis, who hosted their very first tea party in October. I guess we can’t have been too bad last time, and we were very happy to come back!

Visiting hosts for the second time is always really nice, and not only because Pat, Derek and myself tend to get lost when we go to new places. A second visit helps you to get to know the family a bit better, and they also get to know us all too.

We were almost at full strength, with just Violet being too poorly to come out, and the tea party was soon the typical hubbub of conversations about 1001 different topics, whilst four different types of sandwiches, each on white (Pat can’t have brown) and brown (Bill can’t have white) bread, were passed around. You could tell Lynn was hosting her second tea party, and it was really touching she remembered! However, the secret of her impeccable hosting was revealed when I took some empty cups to the kitchen to help with the washing up and discovered an open cookery book with the chapter ‘making tea for a crowd’ lying revealingly open!

Penny the 8 year old boxer dog, and Smudge the cat also made an appearance, and Smudge soon took up her position on Derek’s lap, with Derek looking every inch the Bond villain as he stroked her. Conversations ranged from the realities of childbirth (ouch) to potholes (tarmac on concrete – not a good combination) and learning the lesson of always locking your chickens up at night (a mistake you only make once). The food ended with some beautiful scones with cream and raspberry jam and homemade banana and homemade lemon cake.

As Lynn and Dennis keep pigs, chickens and sheep, at half past four Dennis gave everyone the chance to have a bit of a tour. Derek, Margaret and a few volunteers braved the spring afternoon, and we were soon feeding four mischievous piglets and 40 rare breed chickens with a very large, very proud ginger cockerel. 20 minutes later, and remarkably mud free, we came back to the house for a final cup of tea.

As we left, guests emerged with well scrubbed, newly laid fresh eggs, memories of a soppy dog, lazy cat, lots of farm animals, four incredibly polite teenage children and two very welcoming hosts who made us all feel like part of the family.

Contact in Sweden

Last year we ended with a big tea party with both of our groups together. We held it on dec 13th - the Lucia-day – which was very much appreciated by the guests. Some of them celebrate the whole Christmas season all by themselves otherwise. The drive went out to Saltsjö-Duvnäs in Nacka (20 min outside the city) to the hosts Louise & Lilly Gyll (mother and daughter) who invited us to their pretty house by the water. The guests were first seated in the living room by the open fire and were served the traditional Lucia glögg, gingerbread cookies and lussekatter. After some chats between volunteers and guests in the two groups we all were seated in the big dining room and were served coffee, tea, sandwiches and more sweets. All the guests left with a big smile on their faces that day.

The first tea parties this year where spent in Gustavsberg (Nacka) with group 2 on 24 jan - at hostess Stephanie Vukmanic and her sweet little cat. It’s the flu season so it was only a small group with three guests and two drivers this time. The group welcomed a new guest who were very happy to join.

Group 1 had their first tea party in 31 jan in the city, on Södermalm – Jeanette Predin and Tom Bertling welcomed us to their very modern but also homey apartment (Tom is an interior designer). The group were served tinned sprat sandwiches and some very delicious homemade cakes. The chocolate cake with cream were the favorite. It was a snowy day so the open fire was a welcomed feature also this time.
Jeanette has a blog on RIX FM (a big music radio station in Sweden) and wrote about the day and put out some pictures: http://www.rixfm.com/bloggar/backstage/2010/02/01/musik-och-fika-helg