I enjoyed a delightful tea party with my granddaughter Molly yesterday at the refined, yet kid-friendly Concord Museum.
There were sweets, of course, fancy mini-cupcakes, brownies and star-shaped cookies. And the tea service itself was fun for kids and their adult companions. We were offered a fine selection of teas from Tea Forte, a Concord business that blends custom teas in intriguing flavors like citrus and ginger and chamomile. But no ordinary tea bags, these special little gems are pyramid- shaped silk infusers, topped with a tiny leaf on a string, that arrive in their own little pyramid-shaped box.
You take the bag from the box, drop it in your individual little tea pot, pull the leaf through the tiny hole in the lid and dip your infuser up and down in the water to brew your tea to the desired strength.
She could have had cocoa, but Molly wanted tea, of course. After all, she’s a little girl who loves tea parties and when you’re having a tea party, you drink tea, don’t you.
I enjoyed watching her take tiny sips of the golden brew, using her spoon daintily, and savoring her chocolate cupcake. And I was touched when she politely asked if we could take the other goodies home to Jack, Claire and Mom and Dad. Her generosity and love of family is more evident each day, now that she’s turned five.
But the proper tea wasn’t our only treat. A special visitor had stopped by the museum, stepping in from the cold after her carriage broke down on the way home from Boston. It was none other than Louisa May Alcott (or her alter-ego, Jan Turnquist, who manages the nearby Orchard House, the Alcott homestead where LMA wrote Little Women nearly 150 years ago.)
Molly is still too young to read Little Women, but she gamely got into the spirit of the visit, chatting easily with Miss Alcott. Among tidbits she shared was that she likes to make books; that, like Jo in Little Women, her Molly doll’s dad serves in a war and cares for sick soldiers; that, like Jo’s sister Amy in Little Women, she has a teacher named Amy; and the she misses her friend Finny a lot.
Miss Alcott encouraged her and other children there to read good books if they want to become good writers, to write letters to friends if they miss them and to keep a journal or diary with their thoughts inside. She also said that acting out stories is a good thing – and that’s something Molly excels at.
Molly was enthralled with Miss Alcott. And the feeling seemed mutual, as Miss Alcott smiled and responded warmly to her frequently raised hand each time. Once Miss Alcott left, several ladies helping at tea told Molly she had asked good questions.
We ended our day with a scavenger hunt through the museum, something Molly relished as she discovered the antique clocks, pitchers and the Paul Revere lantern. We never found the bonnet, but we’ll save that for another day.
On the way out, she asked to stop in the gift shop to buy “pirate hats” for Jack and Claire, and, oh, yes, one for herself, too, at my urging.
“I had such a good time with you today, Grammy,” Molly said, nodding into a nap in the back seat.
“I did, too, Molly, it was special,” I replied.
Molly made my day shine. And she and Miss Alcott inspired me to keep reading and writing – maybe even a children’s book to commemorate this special day when Molly met Miss Alcott.
