I spent my Sunday morning flipping through the NY Times' annual Food Issue. One particular article that I enjoyed featured photos of family dinners, taken by photographer Stephanie Sinclair. With dinners ranging from a box of cheese pizza to an elaborate spread of Indian food, the photos and interviews aim to answer, "why does it matter that families eat together?"
As often as we can, Pem and I try to eat dinner together with as minimal TV or other distractions as possible. Since my parents have been in town visiting, we have really been enjoying each others company around the dinner table. I feel like it is so important to carve out some time to really be with the people that you love, and if it is over a spread of delicious food, all the better.
My parents always made an effort to have dinner together as a family. Even as I continued my staunch vegetarianism, dinner would be planned and prepared to appease all dietary preferences so that we could sit down together and catch up on one another's lives. On the other hand, when I was visiting my grandparents, there would be many a time when we would eat our dinners on TV tables in the den, watching Vanna White wiggle around the set of Wheel of Fortune. Memories of both settings are very warm and dear to me.
Did you grow up with a set time to report to the dinner table? Do you prefer to eat meals with the sound of the TV in the background? Does your family say grace before digging in or "bon appetit"? Why do you think it matters that families eat together?
Refreshing article which reminded me of great childhood memories. I forgot how important those moments were and actually how much they influence me even now!
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