I set my alarm clock to wake me up promptly at 6:55am every Monday to Friday. When I get out of bed, I switch on the radio in my alarm. This Wednesday, as I was making my bed, I heard the radio station 98.1 CHFI say that more and more Canadians do not get a chance to eat at least one meal a day as a family.

What does a “family meal” mean? Who has to be present? Is someone eating pizza and another person eating rice or chapatti with beans count as real family meal? Does the family need to sit together around the table, or can someone be watching TV while eating and can another person be eating in their room?

To me, a family meal means that everyone is present, eating the same meal, and siting together around the table. In my Africanadian family, we always eat dinner together, and breakfast together on Saturdays. For the past year, it has only been Thursdays that we miss my mom from the dinner table as she has night school classes to take. Apart from that, it is a family habit that has existed from the time I was born.

As I wrote in my synergize blog piece, everybody has a part in preparing dinner in my family. By 5:30pm, TV will be off, no phone calls will be picked and whatever we are doing has to stop. Everybody must sit together so that we can start eating together.

This sitting normally takes about one hour. During this time, we will eat and then do our family devotions. This is the perfect time for my parents to discuss anything with us. For example, my mom will tell us about her day at work and how the bus and subway rides were. They will also tell us if there are any family outings coming like a party or game like the Simba and Yanga matches we all dearly love.

This is also the time my brother and I call the “family court.” During this time, we will be listening to my mom and her nagging voice telling us why we shouldn’t have done the bad things we did (if at all we did them). This is the time that everyone gets in trouble. Even if it is my brother who did something she cannot tolerate, she will also turn to me and insist that I learn from his mistake … (How I do not like this but have no choice). You know something bad is about to happen when my mother says, “blah blah blah having said that blah blah blah”. That is when you know it is time to brace yourself for a consequence you will never forget!

Either ways, I like our family meal time as I know there are a lot of benefits from it. These include:

  • Eating together as a family brings the family members together. When we eat as a family, we have many conversations. It will help me bond with my family. The dinner table is an important place for the socialization between the watotos and their parents.
  • When I eat with my family, I practice my manners. For example, how to hold folks, closing my mouth while chewing food, no elbows on the table etc. This is the time parents can teach their children manners and behavior that will be required and accepted. My mom will be reminding us, “do not eat with our eyes, serve a small portion and come for seconds later”; “finish your food” (even if it is just one piece of carrots remaining on the plate); “guys, chew your food 20 times before you swallow it” (….pretending to be a doctor…).”
  • Eating as a family helps me as a kid to understand the importance of knowing how to prepare and eat the right amounts of food for a healthy diet and help me avoid snacking around with junk foods.

There are many good reasons people may have for not being able to eat together as a family. These could be parents having to do different shift work. However, it will be good for parents to try having at least one meal a day with their children be it breakfast or dinner. I haven’t gotten tired of eating with my whole family daily yet so do not hesitate to try it. I bet you will soon have a closer bonded family!

Angela-Acaye