Now
that we have had two weeks of food I’d like to take a minute out to explain a
little more about the underlying reasons for cooking a family meal instead of everyone just eating on the run. Not
because we are hungry but because it bring the family together. Ever one
eats but when you cook and eat with each others there is a sense of family, of
community, of friendship among all. I know family dinners have been a
large part of my life for a long time. This weekend I experienced something
new. I skipped out on a family dinner to go have some fun up at Michigan State
with a couple of friends. To my surprise a friend of mine who lives with 3 other
people and some of the neighbors had all gotten together for dinner and when I
asked what was going on they simply replied “oh we all get together at each person’s
house and whoever’s house were at makes dinner for everyone.” I thought it was
strange but this is the sense of community that something as basic as food/dinner
can provide a close nit group of individuals.
Dinners
as a family starting at a young age has an amazing effect on a child. Not only
are they healthier in a world were more and more dinners come from fast food
establishments like McDonald's, KFC, and Taco Bell or other places that may serve your
food fast but might be are still sit down restaurants like Qudoba, Panara Bread, or Chilies.
This video gives you 10 great reasons to stop eating fast food and try making something new for dinner instead.
Kids
are not born with manners, they are learned, and like the video says the dinner
table is a great place to learn them. The dinner table can serve as more than
just a place to teach. It can be used as a place for parents to learn, what their
kids did that day or learned in school. This creates comradery and a sense of community
like my friends from Michigan State had.
I
hope that you start to build that sense of community and enjoy the comradery
that comes with it.
Hi Kevin -
ReplyDeleteJust had to read your post when I saw that it had to do with family dinners. I also feel that family dinners are so important to have when bringing up your children.
My children are a bit older now, but we still try to have family dinners a couple times a month (or breakfast or lunch!) For as a long as I can remember, we had grandparents and friends over every Sunday for a big dinner together.
It is a great opportunity to take time out to find out what's going on in everyone's life, and who doesn't love sharing a delicious meal together anyhow? ;)
I love getting together with friends and family. When we all get together we usually end up with a huge meal (enough to litteraly feed a small army). This leads me to one of my biggest problems when it comes to cooking. Ironically enough I can cook for any amount of people ranging from 4-200 (and yes I have cooked for 200 before) but I have a hard time cooking for 1 or 2. But food has always been a huge role in my life and your right everyone loves food especially homemade food.
ReplyDeleteI could not agree with you more! Family dinners are not just about food, it is about spending time together. And with young kids, it is a great chance to teach manners.
ReplyDeleteI would a tribute a lot of what i have learned and a lot of my traditions to dinners with the family and even with friends.
ReplyDelete