Family Meal time

Dinner time is not the same in the modern world as in years gone by. It's never easy to gather a family to the table on a daily basis. There's work, college, school, sports, and other activites which now prevent the entire household to gather at the table. And mine is no exception.
Earlier today my wee family of five were part of a larger family group for a Sunday lunch celebrating a family friend's 85th birthday. As we five sat beside each other I realised that this is the first time we had gathered together to eat since Christmas Day. With the eldest boy living out of home now by himself, the family are not all under the one roof (mind you the said boy pops in home on a regular basis to eat but just not at regular eating times). Son number two is in college during weekdays and that leaves just three of us at home.

Even with the three, there's rarely an evening that we all eat together. Everyone works different hours and with my being self-employed work can carry on to midnight on occasion.
However when the children were younger the dinner table was a very important facet of family life. It wasn't the perfect dinner table (I've never had a passion for cooking) but there was always food and thankfully it got eaten. But that time at the said table was the time when the day's experiences came out. It was at these times I learned about the good and the bad during that day. Be it in school, the football pitch or just outside on the street. Dinner time allowed for conversation to flow among everyone. It was never planned but I soon discovered that many of the issues going on in the children's lives were disclosed at this time. There were dinners of laughter and there were dinners of tears. But at all times it was 'shared times'.
 Looking back now I realise how important this family time really was. This was a special time and it was a valued time. Secrets became exposed and problems were solved. It was in many ways a therapeutic time of day.

Earlier today I learned some things about the boys lives that I didn't know were currently happening. It was just small things but it came out over the dinner table. It was just like old times. No one else noticed these little things. But I did (mother always notices!!)
So I'm guessing the moral of this little blog piece is to simply make time when possible to sit together at the table. It doesn't have to be a roast dinner. Mine was often beans on toast. But it was our meal time.  It was time to talk and share. It was our family time. And it now holds special memories. Make yours a time to remember too.