The Family Table
Some of life’s most precious moments occur around the dinner table. I know that sounds odd, but it’s true. There are few things that are more important to your loved ones than your time and attention, and one of the few places where this is given without distraction is the dinner table.
I can remember groaning as a teenager when it was dinnertime. Some of my friends’ families ate buffet style, in front of the television or even separately…but NO, my parents insisted that we sit down together every night – or as often as schedules permitted.
Now that I’m a mom, I’m so grateful that my parents insisted on this routine. Our days are so filled with work, school and sports that it’s easy for our evenings to become consumed with homework, laundry and bedtimes…it’s too easy to succumb to dinners on the fly or just letting our families fend for themselves…I’m so grateful that my parents didn’t let that happen and that I have set that same foundation for my family.
(see also 4 Tips for On-the-Go Family Meals)
Those minutes around the family table are precious. They are the moments where everything else stops and your family is given your undivided attention. It’s in these moments, while filling our tummies, that we also fill each other’s souls.
Kids tell more stories around the dinner table with nothing else to distract them. It’s during this time that we get to hear those day-to-day moments that happen while we’re apart. It’s in these moments that we’re able to see how our children are growing, learn who they’re sharing their days with, hear what’s occupying their minds. It’s then, in those precious conversations, that many life lessons are learned. We have the opportunity to use those conversations as teaching moments.
The family table is where we nourish our bodies, but even more importantly…we nourish our hearts.
What are your family dinnertime rituals?
Rachel Matthews is a southern belle and author of the blog A Southern Fairytale. Rachel was featured as one of Babble’s Top 100 mom blogs in 2011 and she was recently named one of the Top 50 parents on Pinterest. Rachel is a mom to two children, who she aspires to raise with good morals, good manners, open hearts and bright futures. She currently resides in Corpus Christi with her family.