Happy Mother's Day

And her children shall rise up and call her blessed!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Life on a Tea Plantation

I was very touched by the lives of the women of Sri Lanka as described by my sister on her recent trip to tea plantations there. This Mother's Day week-end, I thought it fitting to share with readers about the daily lives of these incredible women. In Sri Lanka, only women pick tea leaves, as they are considered flexible enough in movement to pick delicate leaves and men are not. This means that these women not only work long hours in the tea groves, but come home to be mother's, wives, and caretakers of their families. Life is simple, and thus difficult for these women as compared to American standards. Yet these beautiful women work, create, nurture, bless those around them.

Tea Plantation Home

The home of a tea picker is provided by the plantation owner and is called a "line house". About twelve families live in a line house. Each dwelling consists of one room in which the family eats, sleeps, and creates a sense of place, welcome, and reprieve from the business of living.

The homes in these pictures are of tea pickers and of others in the community. Sis and her family were invited to lunch at the home of a Christian pastor and his wife who minister to families of tea workers. The pastor's home can be viewed in the photo on the bottom-right of the collage above. By community standards, the home of the pastor and his wife was more well-equipped than the home of a tea picker. In order to reach the pastor's home, the group walked on a trail for a little more than half a mile, passing other homes along the pathway, until they reached the pastor's home. Like the tea picker's homes, the home was a one-room affair with kitchen, bedroom, and living areas all in one space.

The pastor's wife prepared a gracious lunch for six guests. The menu consisted of rice, potatoes, string beans, carrots, and tomatoes.

Truest Hospitality

These pictures speaks volumes to me --- I can hardly express the feelings they evoke in me. How many times have I not invited guests over because my house wasn't perfect? Too many to admit, I'm afraid. Standards of hospitality, home decor, and self all get in the way with the act of simple graciousness. Can you imagine how the lovely pastor's wife must have felt about inviting six American guests into her one-room home? Yet she served them with joy, graciousness, and friendliness. Her example speaks to my heart --- she has the essence of hospitality from the heart. And that, I believe, is the best kind!

The True Tea Lady

A picture speaks a thousand words. . .