“Let’s go around the table!”
It’s the first thing Charlie shouts as soon as we are all sat down for dinner. It started about a month ago, when I read something from Shannon Hilton. Her family makes a point of going around the table to talk about the highs and lows of everyone’s day. I brought it to our family table a couple of times over the course of a week, and now it’s mandatory.
Last week, when it was just a boys’ night out for dinner as Jen worked late, Charlie still shout it out the moment we slid in to our booth.
“Let’s go around the table!” he cheered.
Charlie usually talks about a toy he played with. Zacharie will share a story about who was “Chef du Jour” at school, and what game they played at recess. Jen will talk about a client, and I’ll tell a funny story I read online.
We also ask the boys if their day was “ça va bien” or “ça va mal” and find out how things ‘really’ are in their lives.
I’ve lamented that family dinners can be a bit of a stressful endeavour, but as the boys get older and can feed themselves, and share stories, things like this make the effort worthwhile.
The next time you all sit together, go around the table and share something of your day.