A TASTE OF TOGETHERNESS

Growing up, maybe it was due to the fact that we lived in a one room apartment or it was just as it should be, my family mostly ate together in one place. We will all gather around one big bowl of eba and one plate of soup and dig in. Even when we visited grandma, we also saw the same practice there. In fact, at grandma’s place, it was even more serious there because you can’t eat if everyone is not complete yet, except that person was not coming back home that day.

Since I was a little girl, I have always enjoyed the idea and experience from g gathering round one table to eat with everyone. I guess I enjoyed it that way because I came to meet that practice at home but then, I also got to realized how much it made us stay connected even when we had conflicts. I mean, it would be very hard for you to keep malice with someone you eat with every day. You will always want to make peace with them because you don’t want bone to hook your throat, lol.

I remember the first time I visited a home where they all have different plates, it was so serious that everyone could identify to their plate. I was not so comfortable with it at first because it was just not fun and united, no one to shout at for eating the meat they shouldn’t have eaten or that person that always eat very fast leaving the rest to manage whatever they could help themselves with. Well, over time, I had to adjust to that way of life because just like me, this particular family have been use to eating separately for as long as they can remember.

For someone who was privileged to have both experiences, I always still appreciate eating with people in one plate than eating alone. But then, I don’t appreciate it when I have to wait for a long time for someone before I start eating. I noticed how the fact that we eat together made us bonded effortlessly. I can boldly and proudly say that, this is one reason why I’m so close with my siblings and my dad. It was only until few years ago my dad stopped eating with us and that was because he developed a bad habit of staying out late. But we never stopped.

When I get to build my own family in the future, eating together in one place would definitely be a thing because I know how beautifully it can affect the bond between people. In the other house I stayed at, I noticed how far apart they were from their dad and personally, I believe that won’t have been that way if they all ate together in one place, right from the very beginning. So, I want my children to be free with us the parents and I know eating together would be of great help.

Most families don’t see the need for this because they don’t all come back home the same time. Or maybe the father or both parents just feel too big to eat with their children which is quite understandable but I don’t appreciate it if the children also find it hard to eat together. I remember, there were even some times when my dad came back late and when it was time for him to eat, we will all still join him at the table and we will most times get meat or fish from him, hehe. And while he eats, we keep him company by either arguing about something or singing, hehe.

Thinking about it, I can remember just few times I wished we didn’t eat together and it was mostly because I was mad at someone or something or because I just wanted to be selfish. Besides that, we created more memories eating together and that was something beautiful and it is something I would also want my children to experience. I’m definitely not changing anything, instead, I’m going to improve on it to make it an habit my children would also love to pass on to their children.

Thank you for stopping by. Feel free to share your thoughts and experiences too. I’m sure it was fun also eating with others, if not, share why it was not fun, hehe.