National Famealy Day! September 26, 2011

Through Presidential Proclamation 1895, every 4th Monday of September has been officially declared as National Famealy Day - the day recognizing the importance of family meals.

                                            Video courtesy of Lucky Me

On this day, family members are encouraged to go home early and have dinner with their family. Parents are reminded to have mealtimes with their children. Family meal is the perfect time to talk about topics directly affecting our children.

Courtesy of pinoyespesyal.blogspot.com

Parents should strive to sit down with their children 5 or more times a week be it in breakfast, lunch or dinner because of the following reasons:

1. Mealtime with the family is where real conversations happen and it provides a sense of security for the children to tell their stories
2. Teens with frequent dinners with their parents are unlikely to engaged in destructive behavior such as smoking, alcohol drinking, drug addiction and pre-marital sex.
3. More frequent dinner results in a better academic performance for the children.
4. Children with strong parental bond results into a less destructive behavior.
5. Children learn table manners and proper social skills as they see from their parents.
6. Involving them in the kitchen benefits the children to be more responsible and self-sufficient.
7. Parents are able to ensure the nutrition of their children because they can see what their children eats and what food their children are fond of eating.
8. Family meals will bring extra savings. Eating outside cost about 4 times compared to preparing meals at home.

These reasons are supported by studies and findings from different respectable groups such as:

• 3 out of 4 teens talk to their parents about their lives during dinner - Center for Addiction and Substance abuse VI, Sept. 2010
• 84% of teens prefer to have dinner with their parents and teens who have 5 to 7 dinners per week with their family are more open ti talk what going on with their lives  with their parents than those who have less meals with them per week (based on a 2009 study on "The importance of frequent family meals IV" conducted by Columbia University's Center for Addiction and Substance abuse.)

Positive influence of parents on their children's lives is vital specially now a days when 1 in every 4 Filipino teens have engaged in pre-marital sex based on the study entitled "Youth's Views on Pre-Marital Sex and Unmarried Parenthood" conducted by Zelda C. Zablan, UP Population Institute 1995.

Video Courtesy fo Lucky Me

How to make family meals a habit? Some tips you may want to consider:

1. Make a commitment and stick to it.
2. Be flexible in selecting meal time. The time must be where most of the family members are available.
3. See to it that at least 1 parent is available. One is better than none.
4. Start with 2 meals a week then increase the frequency as you move along.
5. KIS- Keep it simple.
6. Make it relaxing and pleasurable occasion. No scolding in front of the table. Don't nag, give a lecture or interrupt. It can leads to children clamming up.
7. Be a good listener. Make an eye-to-eye contact when one member is talking. It shows your seriousness to listen.
8. When you need to give an opinion, be as objective as possible. You can share your personal experience on the subject and tell them what you have learned from the experience.
9. Avoid distractions such as cellphone, TV, newspaper.
10. When someone is talking, focus on what is being said and not on what your reply will be.
11. Ask questions to clarify and to make him/her feel he/she is listened to.
12. Do not take side or be compelled to agree on everything  he/she says.    

Video courtesy of Lucky Me

What do you do to make family meals a regular occasion?

I grew up in a poor family. My parents are not that well educated. Every meal, we need to sit down and eat at the same time. This is to ensure that the food is enough for all of us and there's no left overs. Little they did not know that this set up bring us together. But we are not allowed to talk while eating. My grandparents influenced my parent in doing this. We talk after having dinner. This is our time to discuss, ask questions and clarify things that concern us. Thanks to my parents we, their children grew up without having destructive behaviors. We now have our own family. And I'm trying my best to instill values to my children that will help them be a good person and a good citizen.

As a father of 3 lovely kids, I make it a point to have every dinner with them. Sunday meals- from breakfast to dinner, all members must sit down and eat meals together. I'm lucky because some relatives help us in listening and giving advice on my kids. Their titas, uncles and grandparents share their experiences and give options or advices on how to deal with their concerns.

Having frequent family meals may be difficult but it's not impossible. Sadly, as life became more and more difficult and extra-curricular activities ate a big portion of our time, the once sacred meal has taken a backseat. Specially for those OFWs who are not with their family abroad. But there's always a way to do this. One way is to take advantage of the Internet. You can schedule a time for family meal. Pick a time where majority of the family members are free. Set up your web cam (or you can go to an Internet shop), and eat with your family while on cam. I'm sure there's some other ways to do this and you are smart enough to figure it out.

What about you? What do you do to make family meals a regular occasion?

This year's National Famealy Day is on Monday, September 26. Mark your calendar now and pledge to eat with your family!

Bon Appetit! Enjoy your meal with your family!
  
Cogito ergo sum (I think, therefore I am)