Little Coincidences

The Universe has a habit of checking in with me during unexpected moments.  After a restless night, I spent this morning with the drudgery of gathering documents and filling out forms to begin our life in Bradenton next week. While Florida Power and Light thinks I’m brilliant for having a great credit record and thus is not charging a deposit to start service, the City of Bradenton doesn’t care how responsible I am and wants a deposit and a notarized copy of our lease before I can have a wee or wash my hands in our new abode.  None of the paper round-up was particularly difficult, it was really just the fact that we had to schlep around town for notaries and copies and money orders and mail everything off with the hopes that we don’t have to repeat it all over again once we are actually living in Bradenton.  Basically, I was tired, stressed and trying to quell those millions of small (and big) worries that come with starting over yet again in a new place.

With the move only a few days away, we’ve been going easy on keeping the cupboards supplied and the fridge full and that’s what led me to the cupboard by the sink just now.  Thinking it would be good to have a jug of iced tea handy in this heat, and knowing  our supply of Yorkshire Tea was gone, I pulled out a box of tea bags that mum had tucked in the corner.  It’s a brand called Good Earth and the variety is their Original blend, a “sweet & spicy tea & herb blend.”  I make sun tea and usually take off the paper tag attached to the string before dropping the tea bags into the water.  Out of habit I read the tags and was totally surprised by the quote on the second tea bag.

“The first and great commandment is:  Don’t let them scare you.”   -Elmer Davis 1890-1958

First of all, it’s a darn good quote. What with the mess in Congress, the tragedy in Norway, the ongoing struggles of people all over the world and those nagging voices we all hear at times telling us we are not good enough, it’s cause to make anyone quiver.  It was good to be reminded by a tea bag tag that the world can only scare you if you let it. 

  The fact that the quote was from a box of tea made me think of that great quote from Eleanor Roosevelt.  I sure would have liked to spend an afternoon with Mrs. Roosevelt.

But the more surprising element of the ‘Don’t let them scare you’ quote is the author, Elmer Davis; for you see that was my grandfather’s name.  My grampa was not the well-known news reporter, author, Director of the US War Information Office during World War II and Peabody Award recipient. My Elmer Davis worked in logging camps in the Maine woods and in unknown places around Portland.  He exists as just a few stories and images for me as he died from emphysema when I was quite young.  But I am guessing that he would have said pretty much the same thing to me as his quoted counterpart:  Don’t let them scare you.

I’ll try, gramp, but let’s have a cup of tea first.    

(Photos gleaned from Google Images but do visit this blog for more lovely photos from China   http://kahyean.blogspot.com/2010/12/places-in-chengdu-part-2.html)