Saturday: A Study in Sweets and Sturgills

How sweet it is!

Saturday started out nicely with a trip to First Baptist’s Mother/Daughter Tea with Mom. We didn’t find out that we were supposed to wear hats until we got there. Thankfully, they still let us in, even in our bare-headed state.

The theme for the event was, well, tea. There were some genuinely funny moments. One of which was when the 83 year-old emcee said that they would NOT be giving out “door prizes” this year. Instead, she said with a smile, they would be giving out “mementos.”

“They’re the same thing,” She explained sweetly. “Pastor just doesn’t like door prizes.”

We sat at a table with several older women who were some of the most hilarious people I have ever met.

One woman talked about how she and her 1930’s-era schoolmates “pulled the wool over” on their teacher and convinced her they needed to sit out in the cloakroom of their two-room school in order to study better. As soon as the teacher allowed them to move, the girls climbed out the window, one by one, to go play. Except the lady at our table - who got stuck trying to climb out the window and was subsequently caught by the teacher.

“That put an end to that,” she sighed.

One of the women read a History of Tea which was actually very interesting. As a recent convert to tea from soda, I found myself drawn into the story of how tea was discovered and has gone on to be such an important part of industry, entertainment, and leisure all these years.

For refreshments, there was tea and a mountain of sweets. Mom and I almost went into a diabetic coma afterwards.

After the tea, Mom, Brett, and I went to Watertown for our annual Maranatha play outing. Poor Gare-Bear was sick, so he had to stay home, and Mom was stuck riding with us.

According to Brett, Mom and I talked all the way up there “like 14 year old girls at a slumber party.” We were really excited because we thought that the play was going to be The Pirates of Penzance, and I was really looking forward to “I am the very model of a modern Major General…

But we discovered when we got there that it was actually going to be The HMS Pinafore. Which, besides I am the Master of the Sea…, I knew very little about.

After the debate surrounding Maranatha’s last play – Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest, I was rather hoping for another play that could cause controversy in the conservative Christian circles. I find a kind of joy in watching all the fundamentals run around in circles like hyperactive hamsters getting all worked up over things that don’t make the least, little bit of difference out here in the real world.

Anyway, before the play, we enjoyed a delicious dinner ala Aunt Jan’s Famous Chicken Chalupas which we ate on the Sturgill’s going-away tablecloth from Berean (back in ’88). It was very nostalgic to look at all those names back from the “Berean” years. Yep, nostalgic mixed with nasty memories of those years. Thank goodness they’re over now.

The play was SO good! The actors all did a wonderful job, and the singing was amazing. I don’t think there will be anything for the CC’s to kvetch about this year.

It was also nice to spend time with Aunt Jan and Uncle Darryl, even if they do out class us every time with their generosity, hospitality, and thoughtfulness! I know Mom misses Aunt Jan, because they’ve always been close “spiritual” sisters, besides being “real” sisters. It was a treat for Mom, too!

Thanks, Mom – Aunt Jan – Uncle Darryl – and Brett (for driving) for the wonderful weekend!