TJJD Communications

Do you know the difference between “low” and “high” tea?teatime 4

The girls at Karyn’s House do. They learned that and a few other bits of tea trivia during their teatime last week on National Tea Day, as recognized in the United Kingdom.

Youth Experience Leader Elaine Windberg led the teatime gathering and chat. She covered how and why the tradition of having tea in the afternoon got started, as well as the etiquette around this daily ritual.

The girls at the teatime 3halfway house mulled other topics during the parlor repartee, such as where they would like to visit if they could travel anywhere in the world. Their answers included Jerusalem, Paris, Tahiti, Alaska, and Scotland. Put all those together and you’d really see some varied geography!

Teatime fits perfectly with TJJD’s goals of helping young people envision the future and practice communicating in positive ways. (And couldn’t we all benefit from some face-to-face time not involving Facetime?)

Teatime at Karyn’s House also included some actual tea, in this case, Earl Gray, served with lemon and sugar. Cucumber sandwiches, digestive biscuits, assorted fruits, and petit fours joined the spread, creating an authentic teatime experience, thanks to Windberg's planning and help from staff at Karyn's House, in Montgomery County.

So, what is the difference between high and low teatime, you wonder? Well, it’s this: Low teatime is intended as a snack, or late afternoon tide-me-over. It is enjoyed at a low table, like a coffee table, and involves light foods, like those cucumber sammies. High teatime, on the other hand, is a bonafide meal, meant to restore one’s energy after a workday, typically a working-class workday involving labor that demands a big refuel. High tea is served at a high table and offers meat pies, fish, baked foods and even casseroles. Most likely there’s also tea.

National Tea Day, April 21, by the way, is set on Queen Elizabeth’s birthday. Bonus points if you know how old her majesty turned or what color lipstick she wore while out celebrating with an afternoon drive.

 

(Answers: 96 and "bright pink"!)