Tea in the common room

The kettle goes on after lunch. By the time the cups are poured, most residents who can walk are already in the common room. Someone has the window open. Someone else is asking whose turn it is to tell a story. Tea is not a treat here. It is how the day is divided. Before it, there is rest. After it, there is company until the evening meal. Visitors who come at this hour are offered a cup and a chair, and that is usually enough to start a conversation. Staff keep an eye on who has not come out. A cup is taken to the room, and if the resident wants to stay in bed, that is respected. The point is that nobody is left wondering whether the home remembered them.