I’m going to apologize right up front for what I’m about to do. It’s called a rant, and I know some people don’t like that sort of thing. So I’m sorry, in advance.
On the other hand, if you don’t like it, then stop reading. Apology retracted.
If you haven’t heard, today is National Eat Dinner with Your Family Day. While it sounds like a nice cozy day, something about it just rubs me the wrong way.
It’s not that I disagree with the concept itself, statistics have shown that the more often you eat dinner as a family, the less likely your kids are to smoke, drink or use drugs. However, it makes me sad. And to be honest, a little bit angry.
When I was growing up, we didn’t need a special day on the calendar to sit down and eat supper (yes, I know it’s Eat “Dinner” with Your Family Day, but we’ve always referred to the noon meal as dinner and the evening meal as supper. I think that’s a country thing, but it could just be that my family is odd.) It was something we did every day (excluding planting and harvest season when it was likely we’d be in the fields late), because we were a family and that’s what a family does.
Even now I sit down and eat with my husband and our daughter almost every night. There are definitely days when it doesn’t happen, but it’s not the norm. What makes me so sad/angry is that a day needs to be devoted to this. We as a nation shouldn’t NEED this reminder to spend quality time with our kids. Every time I see the commercial about this day and the 'helpful' reminder to eat with my family, it makes my blood boil.
Tell me, am I completely off-base here? Does it annoy anyone else, or am I the only one?
You are a rarity! Yes we definitely eat with our family all the time but clearly the rest of America doesn't. I'm not bothered by it but think more families need to see people like you making family meal time just a part of their every day lives. We don't need reminders of it because it is what we do.
ReplyDeleteYou are normal Becky. Most of the rest of the world is off track.
ReplyDelete