The Value of Family Meals
I am a big proponent of the value of family meals. Around the table, we share far more than food and nourish far more than hungry tummies. Conversations broaden our minds. Taste buds become acquainted to strange new tastes. Lives are shared and history woven. Family culture is founded and grows. A poor soul might be nourished, loved and accepted by those who may not be family in name, but our family in faith and spirit. God is glorified, as we celebrate the rich bounty we have been blessed with, having "enough" in a world that is sadly not so giving to every dear soul. Much goes around the dinner table, regardless with whom we share the meal.
To me, time spent around the table is best done slowly and with the utmost of care and respect. Even when I've had to eat alone for a few days, weeks, or months here & there, I always was sure to sit down at the table with placemat and proper table settings and eat my meal. Perhaps a newspaper, book, or magazine would have been nearby, but respecting the routine of meal time, acknowledge this should be a nourishing experience and not a time to rush, has been a standard I've striven to uphold. I firmly believe doing so is important to a person's well being no matter what, but especially when they are living through a time in life where the punctuation of routine is particularly uplifting.
Even when it was just the two of us, Peapod and myself, during this past deployment year, we were sure to eat all three meals together every day; usually around the table, sometimes out on picnic blankets, and occasionally "camping dinners" under a tent blanket on the living room floor. Several days a week, we share meals with family and friends, and this is always such a treat. No matter who is joining us, or not, the table is set by Peapod, with placemats and the works. We light beeswax candles or enjoy some other centerpiece and try to make the meal the same special occasion it is when Daddy is home or guests shall be joining us. The special breakfast juice glasses come out every morning. The cloth napkins, ironed and scented faintly with homemade linen spray, are part of every meal. And 'mommy and me' placemats are a special way to celebrate the many meals that have been shared by just the two of us.
This simple act oftentimes seems so mundane, the significance of this routine buried under the general rush that is often life. Yes, nourishing our bodies is essential for life to be lived but so, too, is being sure the rest of us is nourished as well. Our spirits yearn for connection to our loved ones. They long to sing the praises of the One Who blessed us with the food we're eating, the roof over are heads, all else we have to be thankful to even when the storms of life might be rolling in. In times of trial, chaos, or general anxiety, the same ol, same ol of this mealtime rhythm can truly be an anchor in the dark and a light that helps you find your way. Meals aren't only about food on plates but roots firmly planted, growing deeper and stronger, as nourishment quenches our thirsts and eases our hungers, that growl about in our stomachs, souls, and spirits.
Picture Credit
14 comments:
Thanks for this great reminder. I agree that eating meals together is very important. I need to make more of an effort for us to all have breakfast together. We would all enjoy the company, and I would enjoy knowing that we're eating a bit healthier. Somehow meals seem to be healthier when they're planned ahead. :)
It's so wonderful to sit at the table with every meal! I grew up that way, but unfortunately my husband didn't. They only sat at the table together on holidays. Otherwise they all ate at different times, or in front of the tv. So sad, but he LOVES sharing dinner every night with us at our table (an old thrift shop find that my mother in law found for us and re-surfaced with a pecan stain). Our table has been with us for 7 years now. Who knows how old it really is. It is missing a leaf, but someday I hope to find a matching one. We love our table. It is such a sentimental part of my/our life that even though we need a bigger one, or at least to find a leaf, I cannot get rid of it.
...I am going to blog about my table... :)
Did you know it is healthier for you to eat slowly? Most americans scarf down their food (even meat) without really chewing it. We all need to take the time to eat slowly, to savor the food that God has provided for us and to share around the table! :)
I loved this post!
There's nothing like having a meal around the table as a family. I so enjoy that time. Now that my kids are getting older, I've found that at the dinner table is when they talk the most. Sometimes during the day if something is bothering them, they wait till it's meal time to share because they are so use to sharing with the whole family.
BTW.....love the pic of the dining table & chairs :)
We always had breakfast and supper together as a family. We never did too many activities outside the home in the evenings. For lunch, of course, they were at school.
Amy, where do you get the lovely pictures for you blog? Could you let me know?
Amy, this was beautifully written; prose poetry, indeed :)
I still remember what a joy it was to plan our Christmas dinner last year, to have everybody crammed into our suddenly too-tiny kitchen, working together to pull it all together. I loved sharing that mealtime with our friends, even when it meant using dollar-store utensils to dish yummy food onto woefully mismatched plates! Claire and I talked for ages after about what a pleasure it was to have company, to make an occasion out of it . . . such a treat.
(I have been meaning to ask you this almost since May, I just keep forgetting-- ever notice that when you post something people agree with, you are "gifted with wisdom beyond your years" but when you post something people don't agree with, you are "presuming to teach and lecture your elders" . . ?
I just thought it was an intriguing phenomenon ;)
Civilla- The pictures I use on my blog are a mix of prints from Art.com and Allposters.com and some of my own personal photography. All pictures that are *not* mine will have a "Picture Credit" link provided at the end of the post. This particular print is from Art.com
I like to browse art websites to find pictures to have at the ready to a blog post now or in the future, since I can't rely on glimpses into my own home and life for everything. :o)
Andrea- LOL, yes, a most intriguing phenomenon it is. Much like the one that earns me the label of an "unsubmissive" wife whenever I do/say/stand for something that somebody else's husband might not approve of or expect of his own wife. All men are the same and expect the same things from their wives, didn't you know? And let us not forget that such issues need to be tattled on to my husband so he can "reign me in" since he would never ever read my public blog nor do we ever share conversations in which we discuss a host of subjects about life. I really should have implemented your joking idea of the "complaint dept" email on my sidebar! ;o)
Honestly, I still think it is something you should consider! You could put a profile pic above it and everything . . . Sean could wear spectacles and look severe, perhaps even sit at a desk behind a stack of file folders, and you could label it "Complaint Department" and . . .
. . . well it bears consideration, at least!
Really, I keep meaning to tell you all sorts of things and forgetting to; how dearly I loved Radical Hospitality, how Peapod's cheerful orange artwork adorns our brand new fridge . . . it really was such a pleasure, meeting with you. I know the circumstances that led to your living there when I was in the area were far from the best, but I am selfishly glad it worked out that way!
Andrea- Sean just read your comment and found it quite hysterical. We're wondering, though, who should be receiving the complaints about his leaving positive comments on my blog? In the biblical order of things, who should be disciplining him for leading me so poorly, with love & goodness as opposed to wrath and negativity? ;o) This is a most puzzling problem....
It was such a special treat to get to meet you! :D My poor stomach muscles were aching after the afternoon spent talking and laughing with y'all. If we ever have opportunity to cross paths again, we will have to share another lunch together. :o)
I'm not sure if I ever mentioned this, but as Peapod & I were walking home that day, she asked if you were from Wait. Everybody who is from somewhere else is clearly from Kuwait in her world. ;o) When my sister went away to study at a special program this summer, Peapod thought she had gone to Wait too. I wonder where everybody will be from now? Will the wonders of Kuwait evaporate? It will be interesting to see.
Yes, I do see where the chain of command could be problematic . . . but oh! maybe that is how you can finally put to use that suggestion that was made to you, the oh-so-sage and not at ALL unsettling advice that you could avoid doing unwomanly work by finding a Friendly Neighbourhood Man to help you out with the manly tasks in Sean's absence. THIS is what he can be used for! Although he will no longer be needed to hammer up the drywall or check out the things that go bump in the night now that Sean is home, he could still be kept handy in case he needs to stop by and scold you for harbouring in your head the knowledge of how to change a tire, and of course he would also scold Sean for daring to approve. Because clearly it doesn't matter what Sean wants his wife to do; it only matters what other women's husbands want you to do.
(I will find the logic in that someday even if it kills me)
And yes, I would love to do lunch again! It would be a pleasure to meet Sean as well, and of course I would have to commission the creation of another Peapod Original to pair with the first. Tell her I send her hugs and hellos, not from Wait, but from the wilds of Canada-- which right now feels about as hot as I imagine Wait might feel. So perhaps she knows something I don't!
(though I doubt you would have reason to be, if your family ever finds itself even remotely in my part of the world, do know that you have a standing invitation to visit. Peapod can play with Dakarai and meet Batcat, and of course Little A will continue my work of indoctrinating her in feminist theory by teaching her how to swordfight and play at being Queen Lucy! I also imagine that by that point, Little A will be more than ready to generously share her own brudder; she may even offer to sell him!)
Amy,
This post is so great and the timing is ironic. I just finished listening to Vision Forum's cd called "The Family Table"! This has been placed on my heart lately and something needs to be done about it. It's hard because my husband doesn't get home until after 7 most nights and the children are usually hungry by then and also my husband enjoys eating while watching the news. I'm going to talk to him about all of these coincidences and see if he agrees we need to at least eat dinner around the table. Weird.
Andrea- Ah yes, that plan might suffice. ;o) *runs to find elderly neighbor to be the Boss of Us*
LOL, Peapod and Little A could take over the world together I think. Little A has her sword; Peapod has her toolbox and cars. All they need know is crazy pink princess dresses with capes and they are good to go. hehe.
Peapod would be most enthused about buying a brudder. We were thinking about bringing her to the Cabbage Patch Doll Hospital before we head West next month, but have opted against this as Peapod does not understand these are DOLLS and not BABIES. Best not to confuse or upset here over something so frivolous. Besides, she'd appreciate such an experience more when she's older anyway. Ans then perhaps she'll have enough hair to get a doll with long hair that looks just like her. ;o) The short curly haired dolls are cute, but they don't have hair to be braided and brushed!
Sigh...I need a table! :D I so believe in this. I think it's somewhat part of why my siblings and I are so grounded and close. :D
Growing up, my family rarely ever ate dinner together. I didn't know how important it was - particularly that eating together has little to do with nutrition! - until I started joining other families for their dinners in college.
In the fast-paced life we live these days, family meals have become a rarity. But no doubt about it, this is one of the best bonding times we have as a family where everyone gets not only to enjoy the food together but catch up with each others' lives. I, for one, miss this so much.
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