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Celebrating community with a cup of tea! (continues in Spring, 2010)
It all starts with June's tea party in Central Park's Strawberry Fields:
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July's tea party brings surprises in and out of the park. Here is a short clip of folks playing to "Let It Go" just outside the park. They're advocating to change the mini-park's designation from a "Quiet Zone" to a Music Zone. After they play, instead of "passing the hat," they pass the petition:
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| Inside the park, we change our setup to include a table and "self-serve" style. Much easier! |  |
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 The sign says, "Celebrate community! Have a cuppa tea." |
Look closely. The slithery creatures on their arms are not jewelry! |
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| Here, we join with new friends who promote anonymous acts of kindness and quote Gandhi's "Be the change you want to see in the world." Their motto and website is Help Others (www.helpothers.org). I take them up on this when, after an hour of serving tea, we go through our supply of 100 cups. The darling who goes to the store brings back 100 cups and refuses to take any money from me. She is beaming when she returns, mission accomplished. Thanks to her, we serve every drop of tea in the bucket for a total of (give or take) 150 cups. |
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 We also meet Mino and Bob, the founders of the new People's Theatre Project, which is commited to a culture of peace and social change through the arts and is based in Northern manhattan. All of us enthusiastically exchange contact info, happy to consider possibilities together. | ||
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September's tea party arrives on the first sunny day in a while. The party preparations begin at Marjorie Markus' apartment on Manhattan's Upper West Side. After brewing the jasmine tea, the room smells delightful. 
We make a big splash pouring it, then make our way out to the street and towards the park. When we get there, the sound of a gong slowly ringing draws us closer. We soon locate the gong. Marjorie investigates, joining a line of folks discovering Vibrational Sound Massage, which Guy Douglas, a self-described "Vibrational Alchemist" offers under the auspices of his operation, The Conduit. Guy is delighted to make our acquaintance as we set up nearby and offer him a cup of tea. As we set up, a boy comes by asking all kinds of questions. Hearing our plans, he offers to help and tells us his name, Nic.
Just then, Nic's dad stops by. Happy to have Nic aboard and his dad's OK, we celebrate with a tea toast.
As we start serving, Marjorie suggests that we write our names on our cups so we don't get confused while serving. Nic is one step ahead. He offers to write everybody's name on their cup. Now as folks come by, he's asking, "would you like honey in your tea, and your name written on your cup?" Most everyone says yes.
The party is going strong. Folks tell us where they're from: Korea, Japan, Australia, even as far away as Connecticut. No matter. Nic asks everybody to spell their names. One woman begins to spell. Nic stops her, "I know that one," he says confidently, "It's my mom's name." A woman from Korea draws the letters of her name in mid-air. We laugh while stumbling to commuNicate through accents, which are mutually difficult to understand.
I see a smiling face approaching. It's Naomi Namba, who heard about the party through our e-list. Naomi, who travelled from Brooklyn, tells us that her art is on display along with many artists in a show entitled, Small Works, Big Idea. Naomi, also happy to serve, joins in as we put ice in cups while greeting new friends.
A few kids come closer, ever curious. Nic asks them, "would you like honey in your tea?" They all say yes.
Soon, smiles are flowing as freely as the tea. Marjorie notices a little girl on wheels checking out the dispenser.
We offer her some tea. She slurps it delightedly. All the while, bells are ringing for Guy and the gang. Nic's dad goes over to drink in the vibrations. He comes back blissfully refreshed. With Nic, Naomi, and Marjorie serving; I head over to wait for my turn of harmonious healing. When it arrives, Marjorie captures the moment: |
