Traffic Calmers

Imagine creating a perfectly passable road - with proper asphalt, curbs and lighting, then placing obstacles purposefully along the way. My British driving instruction manual refers to these impediments as 'traffic calmers' - intended to slow the speed of vehicles, to deter those who would drive with too heavy a foot through a neighbourhood or other speed-sensitive area.

All too often we speed through life, unaware of the special gifts that present -dramatic autumn colours, the true flavours of lunch, instantaneously accessing information via the internet, hearing friendly voices from across the pond. What I periodically require in my day is a 'traffic calmer' - something that encourages me to do more than speed throughout life. I discovered 'traffic calmers' in everyday problems that require me to pause; in the prose written by an ancient king, 'Be still and know that I am God.' Psalm 46.10.

Strange as it may sound, rather than cursing 'traffic calmers', I have come to give thanks.

Secret Places of Significance in England

Recently, I was invited to lunch with the local Rotary Club. We met at a local pub, the Old Manor, in the town centre of Bracknell. In this private dining room, beside the chimney, was what one member pointed out to be a 'Priest hole', yet another feature from English history, unfamiliar to me.

'Priest hole' is the term given to hiding places for priests during the period when Catholics were persecuted by law in England, from the beginning of Queen Elizabeth I reign in 1558. This Act prohibited a member of the Roman Catholic Church from celebrating the rites of his faith on pain of forfeiture of property and position for the first offence, a year's imprisonment for the second offence and imprisonment for life for the third offence. Records reveal one priest being hanged, in December 1591, for having said Mass.

Search parties would bring with them skilled carpenters and masons, trying every possible measure and sounding to physically tearing down panelling and pulling up floors. It was common for a rigorous search to last two weeks.

The construction of many priest holes are attributed to a Jesuit lay brother, Nicholas Owen, who devoted the greater part of his life to protecting persecuted priests. He sometimes built priest holes as an offshoot from a chimney or incorporated into water closets. Owen would never disclose these places to another. He alone was both the architect and the builder. No one knows how many he made. Some may still be undiscovered.

You can learn more about these secret places of significance in the History of Roman Catholicism in England.

Let's hear it for the Nicholas Owens of this world - those with courage to stand against popular opinion.

Bunyan in Bedford

Henry II granted Bedford its Charter in 1166 making it the 2nd oldest Charter in England.

For me, Bedford's greatness rests not so much on its political importance as on it being the birthplace of John Bunyan, author of The Pilgrim's Progress, reportedly the most translated book ever except for Holy Scriptures. The town offers an exceptional museum presenting the life and times of Bunyan, a replica of the prison cell in which he was unrelentingly incarcerated for his faith and a book shop that carries most of Bunyan's writings. Adjacent to the museum is the Free Church from which pulpit Bunyan delivered his weekly diatribes against state-led religion. The Free Church has a series of stunning stained glass windows depicting scenes from The Pilgrim's Progress. You musn't forget to ask the docent to relate the amazing story of the Church's main door. A short walk from these Bunyan buildings is the Ouse River, a lovely place at which to picnic and reflect on what makes one so anchored in faith as to cheerfully endure hardships and repeated imprisonments.

A second favourite stop of mine in Bedford is the Museum of Military Intelligence. This museum displays fascinating exhibits that chart the development of British military intelligence including how this army post played a part in breaking the Enigma Code during WWII. For reasons of security and its continuance as a working site, access to this museum is by appointment only but well worth the effort.

Two very contrasting (heavenly and earthly) yet similarly significantly (against an enemy invasion) historical acts - all within one community.

Nice Cuppa Tea

Trees exchanging coverings of effervescent greens for shades of flaming tones of red and gold, chilled bodies warming beside pub hearths, the start of school and the end of the cricket season, - all signal the arrival of fall in England. And, for many, the arrival of cooler weather begs more leisurely time to be spent over 'a nice cuppa tea.'

Tea is often thought of as being quintessentially British but it was the marriage of Charles II to Catherine of Braganza that established tea as the national drink of England. She was a Portuguese princess and a tea addict and it was her love of the drink that made tea a fashionable beverage first at court and then among the wealthy classes as a whole. Capitalising on this, the East India Company began importing tea to Britain, its first order being place in 1664 for 100 lbs of China tea.

By the 18th century many Britons wanted to drink tea but could not afford the high prices and their enthusiasm for the drink was matched by the enthusiasm of an organised crime network to smuggle it in. Worse for tea drinkers was that taxation (as much as 25p per pound) also encouraged the adulteration of tea, particularly of smuggled teas which was not quality controlled through customs and excise. Leaves from other plants or leaves which had already been brewed and then dried, were added to tea leaves. Sometimes the resulting colour was not convincing enough, so anything from sheep's dung to poisonous copper carbonate was added to make it look more like tea.

By 1784, the government realised that heavy taxation was creating more problems than it was worth. The new Prime Minister, William Pitt, slashed the tax from 119% to 12.5%. Suddenly legal tea was affordable and smuggling stopped virtually overnight.

In 1851, when most all tea in Britain came from China, annual consumption per head was less than 2 pounds. By 1901, fueled by cheaper import of tea leaves from India and Sri Lanka (then Ceylon), consumption rocketed to over 6 pounds per head. Tea-drinking as an established part of British life was officially recognised during the 1st World War, when the government took over the importation of tea 'to ensure that this essential morale-boosting beverage continued to be available at affordable prices.' The government took control again during WW2 and rationed tea from 1940 until 1952.

Nowadays it would be hard to imagine British life without tea. In fact, so important is this relationship with tea that masterclasses are offered in the fine art of tea making and tea tasting for the modest sum of £175 for the day, by Jane Pettigrew at the upscale Chesterfield Hotel, London. (One fact you might be taught is that the tea bag was invented by an American in the early 20th century.)

Although possessing little knowledge or expertise in the matter, I thoroughly enjoy preparing and sharing a nice cuppa tea with a friend. Do you take yours white (with milk)?