So I was thinking about my grandparents this morning. They helped raise me as I had a single, hard-working mom growing up. I was padding around a quiet house making coffee and was struck with a vivid memory of my wonderful grandmother and her old-school attitude. Meals were a big deal to her generation - and the MAKER of the meals was a respected, valued, and revered part of the family fabric. Before anyone else was up, she would get out her seasoned iron skillet and start frying up a hearty breakfast. Eggs, bacon, sausage. Biscuits? Please. Always homemade. Wax paper, flour trails and rolling pins were always present. Black coffee for my granddad, the Navy veteran whose tattoos never matched the gentle Christian I knew.
The meals were devoured amidst noise and light and motion - but I can still remember them. The smell of hot bacon spitting, warm biscuits, buttery eggs, cold sweet jelly.
We've continued that tradition in my home. My wife gets up early every single morning and cooks our kids a hot, solid breakfast. We've tried to make it just a bit healthier, substituting turkey bacon for the real deal, using healthier whole-wheat toast and muffins (with fiber!) But they get a real meal to start the day. Then we plan on sitting down together as a family every night at dinner to talk about what we learned that day...what teachers said what...who was mean to who...we hear all the inappropriate jokes the knuckledheads at school taught them. In other words: be a family.
But my fear is I'm a throwback. A relic. An 8-track cassette in a digital download world. And that makes me sad.
Everywhere you turn, the emphasis is on "saving time"! Drive thrus, microwave rice packets, hot pockets, happy meals. More people eat in their car or over the sink than at a kitchen table. Why? To have a few extra minutes on the Xbox? To watch some DVR'ed show that we don't even really like all that much? We're speeding up - but what are we speeding towards?
We're sacrificing ourselves for the sake of convenience and our family bonds and values are growing weaker and weaker.
If any of this sounds familiar....strikes a chord....or maybe hits a little close to home, here's my encouraging word to you: start simple. Plan just "one meal" with your loved ones. Maybe you can cook it together (its not that hard to put spaghetti noodles into boiling water)....make a little mess....laugh and relax. You'll be surprised at what you'll learn about your kids, your spouse, and maybe yourself.
And that's your encouraging word.
(ah)
Source: http://www.facebook.com/fox13news.myfoxmemphis/posts/10151395083206877
buffett rule lollapalooza lineup joss whedon ronnie montrose melissa gilbert dancing with the stars dandelion wine cough
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.