Sunday Afternoon Tea Party

Unbeknownst to us the freezing rain began in earnest about three and a half hours after we arrived on Coleman's Island to visit our dear longstanding friend early this afternoon.  We were clearly so engrossed in our scheduled duty of rejigging a used computer - and sipping a very agreeable cup of clear Orange Pekoe tea whilst doing so - that we hadn't any idea of the full extent of the icy precipitation.  No matter.  Our commission was by then at least temporarily complete and the glacial descent did little but annoy us upon the conclusion of an otherwise perfectly profitable sojourn. Invariably it is an uncompromising blessing to tread across the border from the Town onto the Island and to linger there among those who are equally predicted to be singular and topical for one reason or another. The Islanders are notorious for their uniqueness - whether a native baseball team or an indispensable municipal councillor; and they are commensurately proud of their distinguishable location.

The steady conviction we three made to our undertaking ensured that at times there was some criss-cross of opinions. Occasionally there were abrupt and unmeasured responses between us - but happily never to the disintegration either of our purpose or our abiding relationships. Perhaps our levity was a reflection of the likes of Bennett Rosamond (after whom the Island woollen mills were named).  There is an undeniable depth of tradition, history and sophistication throughout the Island.  Nor does the compliment extend only to such celebrated bloodlines as the Rosamond family.  I have for example encountered working stiffs who are unabashedly self-respecting (and even at times shamefully boastful) about their social alliance with whatever transpires within the limits of the Island (surrounded as it is by the confluences of the nearby Mississippi River).

Being secluded as we were in this landmark environment with one of Almonte's notable animation artists naturally lent a degree of smugness to our temperate congregation. It is no accident that we relish the association so enthusiastically.  Our connection goes back many years and covers many incidents, both gleeful and gloomy, a true reflection of the ups and downs of this always unpredictable business of living.  We've walked together upon the flowery paths of prosperity and the rugged roads of sorrow; and in every case managed to maintain that elegance of a truly philosophical approach which inevitably enhances one's spirit and character. What a gift it is that together the experience of life is always assured to be both compelling and empowering.

Which isn't to say that we're beyond the visceral pleasures of this mystical worldliness. Indeed so committed are we to the pleasures of life that we greedily embrace the opportunities whatever they may be! And all this over a cup of tea!  Imagine!