Gunpowder and Tea Cakes: My Journey with Felicity

I tell her I want to stay in Williamsburg. I’m here to learn about Colonial Williamsburg, not travel to far-off plantations.

After a brief hesitation, Mrs. Merriman nods. But if British soldiers arrive, they’ll leave at once. Throughout our conversation, Marcus was standing to the side patiently. When Felicity’s mother says the carriage won’t be needed today, he nods and follows us inside.

I go upstairs to Felicity’s bedroom so I can change into her spare dress. I wriggle out of the one I am wearing and get my first good look at my underwear. The bottom layer is a loose, lightweight, short-sleeved dress-type garment. Something made of heavy striped fabric is around my chest. No wonder I can hardly breathe!

Felicity adjusts the laces of my stays so they’re looser. They make me want to stand up straight, but aren’t uncomfortable anymore. And her spare dress is a perfect fit for me. Felicity fingers the necklace of the miniature portrait around my neck. She says the coral is for good luck. She asks if the woman in the portrait is my mother.

It’s not, of course, but I nod my head yes. She asks if I’d like to see her portrait. She opens a wooden box and pulls out a string of coral beads and a tiny painting. The miniature shows a young girl. I can tell by Felicity’s expression that the girl is no longer living.

Felicity explains it’s her friend, Charity. She caught a fever when she was young and died. The beads were given to her by Charity’s mother.

We hear Mrs. Merriman calling from downstairs. Felicity puts her treasures away and I tuck my miniature back beneath my kerchief. We go downstairs to find the table set. My stomach growls at the sight. Nan joins us and we sit at the table. Felicity pours hot chocolate from a silver pot into china teacups. She makes each move look graceful.

Felicity asks me if I’d like some cakes. I tell her I would like a piece of cake, until I see the plate is piled high with cookies. I stammer, and then take two that look like gingersnaps. After we’ve eaten, Nan goes upstairs to tend to William, and Mrs. Merriman leads us into the parlor.