Sad and true all at once. I still enforce the nightly dinner ritual despite the resistance I get each and every day. Making memories that will resonate later…maybe?
When our kids were young we had family dinners every night. It was at my wife's insistence, and it was worth the effort and grumbling. So glad we did it. There was laughter, fierce debates, and epic verbal fights, some of which we still laugh about.
And yeah this change is really sad, I remember it in my family. When I was very little we ate together, and then gradually it became less and less and eventually it was as you said, me alone in my room with my computer, but mom of course made the meal for me. >_<;
Another thing I would throw into this equation is wealth: Fast food was a treat when we (you and I) were children because even though it was cheap relative to other restaurant food, it was still expensive relative to what a frugal home cook could whip up.
My mother was educated (college B.A. in business and economics, class of 1964), and had >1 full time job (running a small company with my father and teaching and/or doing door to door sales). Also, we had home cooked dinners every night, because the reason for all those jobs is that we were poor. It's also why, as soon as I could plausibly be expected to do so as the eldest child, cooking became one of my responsibilities.
This also leads me to wonder how the death of the American dinner ritual is tied to the infantilization of middle class American children--not just in terms of catering to their dietary wishes, but also in terms of not wanting them to do things that are "dangerous" like working with stoves and knives. My mom worked very hard, but at least she could count on 10-year-old me to make the tuna casserole. If parents must do everything, I can see why McDonald's becomes a more and more attractive choice.
I think you see the same things going on in your example about farmers in India: meals made by mom are cheaper than the cheapest restaurant meals, and mom is not in it alone--once her kids are old enough, she has helpers.
Sad and true all at once. I still enforce the nightly dinner ritual despite the resistance I get each and every day. Making memories that will resonate later…maybe?
At least it’s only one resister!
When our kids were young we had family dinners every night. It was at my wife's insistence, and it was worth the effort and grumbling. So glad we did it. There was laughter, fierce debates, and epic verbal fights, some of which we still laugh about.
Yes, it's worth it!
Glad to hear the positive reviews!!!
And yeah this change is really sad, I remember it in my family. When I was very little we ate together, and then gradually it became less and less and eventually it was as you said, me alone in my room with my computer, but mom of course made the meal for me. >_<;
Another thing I would throw into this equation is wealth: Fast food was a treat when we (you and I) were children because even though it was cheap relative to other restaurant food, it was still expensive relative to what a frugal home cook could whip up.
My mother was educated (college B.A. in business and economics, class of 1964), and had >1 full time job (running a small company with my father and teaching and/or doing door to door sales). Also, we had home cooked dinners every night, because the reason for all those jobs is that we were poor. It's also why, as soon as I could plausibly be expected to do so as the eldest child, cooking became one of my responsibilities.
This also leads me to wonder how the death of the American dinner ritual is tied to the infantilization of middle class American children--not just in terms of catering to their dietary wishes, but also in terms of not wanting them to do things that are "dangerous" like working with stoves and knives. My mom worked very hard, but at least she could count on 10-year-old me to make the tuna casserole. If parents must do everything, I can see why McDonald's becomes a more and more attractive choice.
I think you see the same things going on in your example about farmers in India: meals made by mom are cheaper than the cheapest restaurant meals, and mom is not in it alone--once her kids are old enough, she has helpers.
The middle-classes have become a caste of lesser, debt-ridden aristocrats with tons of service providers to facilitate!