Tea by the sea…

Welcome, we are sitting overlooking azure waters of the bay today, the sun is shinning, the birds are chirping & the waves are gently lapping the shore, let us begin our time of reflection…

I have brewed my all time favorite tea blend, Earl Grey. A black tea with bergamot added, a leafy herb that was used as a tea by the early American Indians for sore throats, stomach ailments & colds.

My tasty treat is a chocolate covered organic bite with coconut & candied citrus pieces.

Earl Grey tea is the one blend I keep coming back to, I enjoy it everyday with breakfast. 

It’s like an old friend, you know exactly what to expect & it never disappoints.

Especially in that early part of the day when you need that true & trusted cup that is part of your comforting routine.

I must admit I do find routines very comforting

I particularly realized this after my late husband passed away from brain cancer in 2002.

I was living & working on our farm as a wool grower & also as the region’s clinical counselor when he died.

The big drought had just started… Going out to hand feed our large flocks of sheep & checking their water troughs each morning was comforting.

I knew what I had to do, to keep my husband’s life work going & I was determined to honor his memory in this way…

But after a while I realized, although these routines were comforting & my intentions honorable, they had also started to be emotionally draining.

As I was living another’s dream, my late husband’s, not my own.

I came to a point where I knew that I needed to get out of the routines that had initially bought comfort & live the life I had been created to live.

My husband’s greatest desire for me before he died, was for me to go & live an abundant life after he passed into glory…

pexels-photo-60171.jpeg

I had to ask myself was I living that abundant life?

After much prayer & soul searching, for this was not an easy decision to make, I made preparations to hand the farm over & to head for my dream with God’s clear direction for my life…to the mountains by the seacoast!

“The Lord is my Shepherd,  I shall not want…. He leads me beside quiet waters, He restores my soul.”

Psalms 23: 1-2

A short time later I found myself living in the most beautiful seaside paradise, that has been so very healing & restorative for my soul.

So, while I still enjoy comforting cups of Earl Grey tea as part of my morning routine.

I no longer try & keep someone else’s dream or life’s work alive but live my own life, abundantly.

Trying new tea blends & new little experiences that are healthy for my soul…like starting this blog!

While we are in reflection, ask yourself dear friend…are you living the abundant life you were created to live?

Or are you trying to live a life that is or was someone else’s dream for you or them?

Yes, it may have started as a comforting routine or a great idea at the time but has it now become unhealthy…hmmm?

Well, my Earl Grey tea is now finished & the chocolate bite was absolutely delicious! The tide has come in & my shady spot is no longer shady…

Until next time,

Jennifer

You’re most welcome to join me in The Reading Nook

Or 

In Prayer

© 2018 Jennifer M. Ross, teawithjennifer.blog All Rights Reserved. Photo on Pexels.com

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48 thoughts on “Tea by the sea…”

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  3. Please accept my condolences on the passing of your dear husband! I have begun to ask myself this question almost every day – am I living my life abundantly? It is a great question to start my day with and to end it with. Thank you for your gentle post.

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    1. Thank you for your kind words Patricia.

      Yes, we need to step into the special life that we were created to live. And when we do, it is so abundant in every area even in the harder times!
      I know you will find your abundance.
      Jennifer

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  4. Dear Jennifer,

    Thanks so much for inspiring us and for sharing your dreams, past and present. As our lives change, so much our dreams and goals. Earl Grey, Lady Grey and English Breakfast Tea are among my favorites for getting the day off to a great start. This afternoon I’m sipping on a cup of Irish Breakfast tea and munching on home baked cranberry, walnut, chocolate chip cookies as I reflect upon changes in my own life, present, past and future as I follow my dreams. Years ago when our daughters were growing up, we raised Shropshire sheep and grew vegetables on our 40 acre farm in Southern Maine. It was a wonderful place and time filled with so many memories. Since then, we’ve traveled and worked in several places across USA, now retired and back to Maine, but this time the central part of the state. Dan, my husband of 50 years still enjoyed his gardens and cutting firewood; but, for me, I most enjoy those comforting day trips to the coast, where the sea and air always seem to open their peaceful arms to me.

    Blessings and love,
    Bette

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    1. Your cookies sound enticing Bette, yes, our tastes do change & mature as time passes, don’t they…I used to take my tea black, sugarless with a hint of lemon before I had my first daughter. Now I take most teas with milk & sugar…

      It is lovely to get to know more of your life, which sounds a full one.

      We had Merino sheep, wheat & oat crops on the property, my husband was a farmer when we got married…I had a veggie patch in our homestead paddock, granny smith & crab apple trees, huge 100 year old sweet naval orange tree (made beautiful sweet marmalade).

      I do agree, the sea & the breeze across it is just so intoxicating. I love it too…I loved my time in the country on our farm (6 hrs road trip from here) but the coast makes my heart sing!
      Have a blessed week,
      Jennifer

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  5. Visiting from Faith ‘n Friends. This is such a beautiful post. And Earl Grey a favorite tea of mine as well. The abundant life to me is about coming to know more of the fullness of the Lord’s love for us even in the hard times and being willing to follow Him beyond the darkness. Sometimes we can be blinded to His abundance for our lives by our pain or striving. I am so glad that you recognized the abundant life you were created for and are choosing to live it. Thank you for sharing this. Sweet Blessings to you!

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    1. Lovely to have you here Cheryl! Thank you for your compliment & its a pleasure to share a little of my journey…
      Yes, walking in the life we were created to live is a learning curve for each of us, it also takes a choice to take that step towards it, doesn’t it… & to live abundantly… keeping focused on His leading & direction, especially when the challenging times confront us…pain & striving can blur that focus if we allow it…
      Sweet blessings to you too!
      Jennifer

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  8. Thank you for gently calling us to examine the dreams (ours or another’s) we’re living out. I’m sorry you had such a terrible season of loss, but I’m inspired by your brave pursuit of moving toward your own dreams. I love what you’re doing here! Oh–and I love Earl Grey!

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    1. Thankyou Amy,
      It is always wise to reflect where we are going & what experiences/choices have bought us to the present…including if we need to take steps to live our own abundant life…
      Jennifer

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    1. You’re welcome Mary, it’s a pleasure to share my journey, so many blessings have come from the different legs of it to encourage others on theirs.
      Thank you for your compliment.
      Jennifer

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  11. Jennifer, yes o yes I had to come over and read about the transition and the sea! My husband & I just moved from our country/farm home of 30 years – it was both of our dreams to live there, rurally and we did so happily. My husband is now retired and I am still working but I do work from home which is quite lovely actually. We will be picking up our travel trailer in November and begin living another dream – traveling with our sweet “Gracee” hitched to our new cayenne red truck. We have already named our travel trailer. Since moving from the country we have experienced great sadness in the loss of our faithful companion, Sam, a 14-lb furry doggie. Oh such sadness. But, we will go on and be grateful for the 14 years we had with Sam at our side. I cry as I type.

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    1. I’m so sad for you losing your precious pet, they wrap their little or big paws around our hearts & we are absolutely heartbroken when they leave us, totally empathize. I remember what it was like when first Polly my faithful sheep work dog who came with me to the sea died, I was absolutely devastated. Then 2 years later Bobby died who also had made the transition with me…

      So glad you have plans with Gracee, that sounds like lovely couple times together. ♥

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      1. Jennifer, I am reading this post again and loving it just as much. My word for 2020 is abundant/abundance so your word choice causes me to smile. We have now done something even crazier than selling our 30 year home, buying a travel trailer, we now live in a 399 sq ft tiny house by a lake. Whew!!!! And, I do love a good Earl Grey!

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  12. Jennifer, the photos are beautiful – most peaceful. I so enjoy a “cup of tea” with you when our paths cross 🙂 I am so sorry for your loss as I don’t think I realized this before now. Amazing how God gave you the time to grieve while living your husband’s dream but also showed you when it was time to let it go. He knows the paths we are to take and gently leads us there. Blessings today!

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    1. That He does Joanne. Yes His timing is perfect for all things in our lives, though we do question that timing when we lose a loved one.
      Later we can look back & see His hand of amazing love, comfort & grace in that season. 😀

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  13. I love the photos – it’s snowing here just now, so some sunshine by the sea sounds wonderful! I love your reflections on living abundantly and living out the dreams God has for us. It’s easy to get stuck in the routine of something that was right for a time without realising that it’s time to move on. I love that you had the courage to try something different!

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  14. I too find comfort in tasks and routine. Now that it’s summer I water my flower pots each night and listen to my audio book. Or I just think and meditate. So soul renewing. Great advice about living our dreams and life.

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    1. Thank you Theresa! It’s comforting to have our routines, they help us to relax in the known rather then being constantly faced with the unknown.
      You sound like you have some lovely summer evening routines 😀

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  15. what a beautiful, refreshing place! yes, routines are a gift and hard to come by in this season! My summer routine has included time with the Lord, stillness and time giving thanks, otherwise my mind is overwhelmed and my thoughts take over. Grateful to have found your blog.

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  16. I confess that I woke up this morning feeling weary and worn. I prayed and asked God to give me the energy and motivation I needed to get through my day. As I sat at my computer and started clicking on the Tell His Story linkup posts, I clicked on yours. Tea by the Sea. Between the title and gorgeous image, I felt a soothing calm settle over me like a warm blanket. Thank you for sharing your story. In so many ways, I’m living my dream and a life of abundance. The more I seek His face, the more He showers me with blessings.

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  20. Thank you so much. Wise lesson. I once tried to learn Hebrew and Ivriet, after my dad’s dead. To hold fast a little piece of my fathers world. But I let it go. It was not my thing.

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    1. You’re most welcome Aritha. Yes when our love ones pass we try to honour them in ways that unfortunately may become a burden to us. But their memory is what we hold onto especially the precious times we had with them. 😊

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