Cultivation at the Dinner Table - Robert

     Anthropologist Robin Fox said, "a meal is about civilizing children." This simple quote can be interpreted in many different ways, varying based on whom you ask. I believe Fox's quote means that taking the time to have "family meals" at home improves the lives, manners, and behavior outside the home.

     Back in my "younger" days, my brother and I were usually forced to sit at the dinner table with the rest of our family to discuss our days and plans for the week/weekend. While this may seem like some small tradition, it honestly built our character and significantly improved our behaviors in a public setting. When we'd go out to eat or stay at a friend's house, my brother and I would apply those same "table manners."

     Besides the physical behaviors we developed like not smacking the food in our mouths and saying "yes ma'am and no ma'am," and so forth, we also built a sense of knowing when enough is enough (something not many people have). If we started to act up or get too rowdy at the dinner table, a strong scolding was headed our way. I would then realize that what I did shouldn't be done and would set boundaries. That is something many children nowadays completely overlook: boundaries of behavior. While being such a small act, I feel as if eating as a family should be a tradition in every household, no matter the age. As Micheal J. Fox once said, "family is not an important thing. It's everything."

-RL