Birds, Hook and a Little Tea

The reason I love “Peter Pan” is that it seems to be a little all over the place. Like in “Alice in Wonderland,” the thoughts and narrations seem to have no rhyme or reason. As you recall, last week we were in the throes of two mournful parents and one regretful dog. Now we hurtle ourselves into the sky for what seems like days, maybe even weeks. The children travel the skies with a forgetful destination. Over the ocean and above the countryside they fly. When the lot of children get hungry, Peter teaches them to steal bits from the birds flying among them. Of course the flock are not happy with that and there is much back and forth between them. John and Michael take turns falling asleep in the open air and they find themselves bumping into clouds or falling down to their very near deaths just before Peter slyly saves them at the last second. Like a dream, there is no organization, no goal to reach toward the end, there might not even be an end to it if Wendy were not there. Countless times Peter forgets who Wendy, John and Michael are. Wendy has to constantly remind Peter of their names and destination.

Time Out For Tea:

“There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon teas.” Henry James

Tea has been around for centuries, originating in China. It became a popular choice of beverage in England by the 1660’s during King Charles the second’s reign. However what we now know as “afternoon tea” did not become an England staple until mid 1800’s. So “afternoon tea” is truly a Victorian invention. The Duchess of Bedford introduced the tradition, as she would find herself hungry around 4pm each day. So a plate of tea, bread and butter would be delivered to Duchess Anna to tie her over until supper which was held at 8 in the evening. Although I am not British, I love the idea of tea time. My daughters and I hold monthly poetry tea times in our home and once a year in February we have a Valentines Tea at a tea house with friends. Tea time makes me feel a little more refined and proper, almost as if I were a Duchess.

As I do not drink black teas I will be highlighting a slew of roobios/herbal teas and cocoas. I love a good hot drink to warm me up for the day and calm me down for the evening. Celestial Seasonings “Tension Tamer” does just that. I would love to know your favorite tea of choice.

Back to our dialog of Peter Pan! At last Wendy, John, Michael and Peter move onward to Neverland, where the children recognize places and characters like old friends. Neverland is wild and rampant with pirates, natives, beasts, fairies, mermaids and of course, boys. The fantastical all reside on one island, and with the exception of the mermaids, always seem to be on the hunt for each other. We meet the lost boys, Tiger lily and her tribe, as well as the infamous Captain James Hook. James Hook is not a captain to be trifled with, as one swipe of his hook and you could be a dead man. It is at this time that two important things happen. Hook finds the lost boys home under the ground, after which the lost boys come out in time for Tinkerbell to tell them to shoot the Wendy bird up in the sky.

It is a shame that Tootles struck Wendy with an arrow, but by a stroke of luck she was saved by the thimble or kiss Peter gave to her and hung around her neck. What a lovely display of imagination and wonder occur when the boys gather round and build a home about Wendy. This is why I love this story, reality and fancifulness mixed together. I could get lost in Neverland, in fact I would like to build my own Neverland someday. Would your Neverland have pirates? How about mermaids?

Of course one of the great appeals to Neverland is the mermaids, and it is in the lagoon admiring the mermaids where we have our first encounter with Captian Hook. I find it extremely sad that not even Smee remembers his mother. Now Hook is determined to steal Wendy and have her be their mother. As we can see a kind and patient mother is in high demand in Neverland. I love the silliness of Peter’s conceit and the guessing game playing Hook and Peter play. There is so much delight to this story I could go on and on, but now it is your turn. What do you love about Peter Pan?

For tea time inspiration and some history check out my source:

https://www.historic-uk.com/CultureUK/Afternoon-Tea/