Why Sunday dinners are important to me
You don’t need to be a religious man to appreciate the observance of a rest day. In my case, it is Sunday. Whether my daughter’s with me or not, I use that day to reset from the past week and to get ready for the week ahead. Sunday is also a blank slate. Free of work and school, free of extracurricular activities or Saturday morning commitments, and maybe even temporarily free of work emails, Sunday mornings have unofficially become the universal downtime recognized by all. Even telemarketers don’t call at this time. I can wake up whenever I want; my middle aged body certainly appreciates the extra sleep. When my daughter is with me, our sleeping-in is about 7:30am—but that doesn’t mean we get out of bed. She climbs in and snuggles as we watch TV together until we get hungry enough to make breakfast around 10am. It’s the way I wish every morning would be.
As Sunday unfolds, there could be a number of unhurried and unplanned things for us to do. Sometimes it is spontaneous but even routine is unscripted. My daughter may even have an impromptu playdate where she goes over to a friend’s house for a few hours and I can catch up on a bit of domestic loose ends like laundry paired with a cup of tea. But come late afternoon, it’s time for the cattle drive because Sunday dinner is being prepared. For me and increasingly for my daughter, this family time is sacred.
For me, a peaceful Sunday night is a nice way to recharge for the new week. I’ve also discovered that mom’s old recipes will always be new again and what’s new is that family dinners will never get old.
Every Sunday, I try out a new recipe and my daughter loves to help. Most of the time, it turns out edible. Only once or twice, was it a catastrophe and I wound up ordering in. At least we know not to attempt that same recipe in the same way the next time. Once we were making chocolate cups by drizzling melted chocolate over a balloon before freezing it. I guess we didn’t let the chocolate cool down enough and the balloon imploded. Like a supernova, the balloon collapsed and chocolate exploded everywhere. We looked at each other’s chocolate splattered faces with deadpan expressions and then burst out laughing. But most of the time, it is far less eventful. But that’s what makes it so habitual. We sit down for our meal, we chat, we laugh and we listen to music.
Occasionally, we have a family member or a friend drop in to join us. But most of the time, it’s just the two of us. Whether it is a dinner for two, three or more, food and conversations are never in short supply. It goes without saying that all toys, electronics, phones and TV in the background are considered contraband. Such distractions would preclude discussions and storytelling. It is through these conversations that I draw inspiration for the content of this blog. And sometimes, the meal is eaten with long stretches of silence as I know she’s enjoying every morsel of food.
Probably the most important reason why Sunday dinners are important to us is the time we get to spend with each other as a family. Even though there are only two of us in this household it doesn’t make having dinner at the dining room table any less meaningful. I would argue that having a sit-down family dinner is even more vital for smaller families. It’s truly where we have one-on-one time that is often rushed during weeknight dinners. Additionally, preparing Sunday dinner offers the chance to recreate some of my mom’s tried and true recipes. Whether it’s using a crock-pot or experimenting with nouveau cuisine (including the exploding chocolate kind), I’ve discovered that what’s old will always be new again and what’s new is that family dinners will never get old.