Patience + Practice = Magic

Ever since we arrived, we`ve seen signs all over town advertising a performance for children of The Sorcerer`s Apprentice. In a move that surprised me (and John), I actually was organized enough to order the tickets in time and we set off for the show yesterday afternoon.

Well, first we went on a bit of a mission into town. First we stopped for lunch at the Almonry, a restaurant in the crypt of a building next to Ely`s magnificent cathedral, where Kate and Liv enjoyed a ham sandwich and Jack tried out a Ploughman`s Plate (bread, cheese, veggies... perfection!). Then we set off to look for new sandals for Jack (his toes are literally hanging over the ends of last summer`s sandals) ... but the kids also wanted to go to the toy store to buy birthday gifts for each other. Kate and Liv seem almost as excited about Jack`s birthday (on June 8) as they are about their own (June 17). They are counting down the days to his big day, and advising him on cake choices, meal preferences, and other important plans.

Taking three kids to a toy store without backup was probably not my best idea ever. It was, to say the least, a bit chaotic. But I had told them the price limit (and they seemed to actually understand, with the exception of when Kate and Liv pointed out a $150 mega Lego Star Wars set that they thought Jack would really REALLY like). I reminded them they were shopping for each other (not picking out things for themselves). And eventually each had selected a present for the appropriate siblings. Whew. A parenting success, or something like that!

We dropped the presents off at home and then walked down to the river, where the performance would be held.

It was a one-man-two-puppet show, and all three kids loved it. It starts with a new magician`s apprentice explaining that Patience + Practice = Magic... and moved on into a wonderful, funny, thoughtful, interesting show. We couldn`t take pictures during the performance, but were able to snap some at the end when the performer came out to talk to the kids.

Not only was he a talented performer during the show, but then he was also unbelievably patient as he explained how the puppets worked, how the set and lights and props were made, and how only a real magician can wear the magical cap (and he proceeded to let all of the kids try it on). The only thing he didn`t share was his magical tricks -- because a true magician never gives those secrets away, even to a room full of clamouring kids.

While we were having all of this fun, John was presenting a paper in Denmark. Thankfully, it was very well received, and he is now able to enjoy the rest of the conference. We`re all eager to see him when he gets back, but have (clearly) been managing to get by with lunch out and shopping!

And... on a slightly sad note, I have to report our first huge case of homesickness, or pet-sicknessness as the case may be. During breakfast a half hour ago, we were talking about all of the other June birthdays we get to celebrate (their cousin David, friends Jim and Alex, auntie Amy, and many, many more). Of course, June is also the month we celebrate our dog Kaia`s birthday... and when I mentioned that, Katie just lost it. She misses Kaia so much, she said, and what if she dies before we get home? Miss K is an old dog, at least 12 but possibly much older as we adopted her as an adult, and for the last few years we`ve talked about how no one knows how long any dog will live, which clearly Katie remembered. In the midst of her sobs and real tears and mumbling words none of us could understand, she started to list all of the people she missed (including some France friends as well as many friends and family in North America), but, still sobbing, said she misses Kaia most of all.

She is now working on a drawing of her taking Kaia on a walk, and I really, really, REALLY hope our sweet mutt, who is living the life of luxury at with John`s parents and sister in Montana, hangs on for another 18 days! There will be three happy kids (and two happy adults) very, very eager to see her.

Grantchester, ah Grantchester!

So, yesterday I planned to take the kids to Grantchester.

It`s pretty much the kind of place you always want to go to. The tiny hamlet is surrounded by green fields and a wandering river and flowers as far as you can see. During our Cambridge days, we often walked the two or so miles there to have tea (or coffee, in my case) with scones and clotted cream at The Orchard. From the tea house`s website:

The Orchard - a corner of England where time stands still as the outside world rushes by. Relax and enjoy the genteel setting where more famous people have taken tea than anywhere else in the world.

...The Orchard, first planted in 1868, became a Tea Garden purely by chance. A group of Cambridge students asked Mrs Stevenson of Orchard House if she would serve them tea beneath the blossoming fruit trees rather than, as was usual, on the front lawn of the House. They were unaware that, on that spring morning in 1897, they had started a great Cambridge tradition.


The students enjoyed their rural tea, and word spread around the colleges. ...The Stevensons’ advertising card also proudly announced that the Orchard was not connected to any Public House. With few exceptions, very little has changed in the Orchard since then.

The poet Rupert Brooke used to rent a room there, and his friends (including Virginia Woolf) would come out for a bit of calm after their hectic life in Cambridge. Brooke is famous for the World War I poem “The Soldier” written months before his death which includes the line “If I should die, think only this of me: That there’s some corner of a foreign field That is forever England”. He is less famous but locally beloved for his poem “The Old Vicarage, Grantchester”, written in May 1912, which includes the line “But Grantchester! ah, Grantchester! There’s peace and holy quiet there...”

So with all of this history and all of this affection, I packed our bags to catch a train with the kids to Cambridge. Our friend Jason, who coached the women`s 8-person boat I rowed with during our year in Cambridge, picked us up at the station and took us to his house, which is at the edge of Cambridge just where the walk to Grantchester begins.

We had a great lunch at his house and then set off. I had told the kids all about Grantchester and The Orchard -- even explaining a bit about the history of the place but stopping myself as I started to talk too much about World War I (and I am pretty sure if you asked them today, they`d have no idea who Rupert Brooke was, or Virginia Woolf -- but you can`t blame a former English major for trying).

The walk was as lovely as ever. We passed cows and punters (people pushing flat-bottomed boats along the River Cam) and cyclists and runners. We passed children and grandparents and even discussed the kissing gates (a way to keep the cows contained that could land you with a kiss if you passed through it the right way). The girls legs got pricked with stinging nettles as they romped through the fields, and Jason proved that he is in fact British, as he was able to quickly find the plant that provides the antidote to the sting (John and I are amazed at how much British men and women know about plants... Jason just added more proof to this broad generalization about all Brits!).

It was beautiful. But... it was àlso too long and too hot for two little girls. Despite stopping less than a half mile from our destination for water and emergency snacks, we had to turn back.

I don`t think the kids know what they missed, which is good. And maybe my sentimental memories of Grantchester are best left in my mind, as memories. Or maybe we`ll get back there next week. Who knows. But if you ever find yourself in Cambridge, it`s worth the time to meander along the Grantchester Grind to The Orchard. And if you do, be sure to stop and listen. You might just hear the echos of decades of laughter and deep conversations from poets and students and writers and friends. It`s definitely worth the trip -- especially if you aren`t almost-five-years-old!