Practicum 3: Family Dinners

I bit off of Andrew’s practicum a while ago for mine this week. It seemed like a good one for me to do because it rolls several of my values into one thing. Most obvious of those values is family, but I also find my values of taking time and quality in family dinners. Spending time with family over food is an important routine to make, and unfortunately we haven’t prioritized it for a long time. I hope to make it a more frequent occurrence beyond this week, though.

Overall, the practicum worked very well. My parents and I (and occasionally a few other members of the extended family) would actually sit at a table without piles of junk on it, with actual table settings, and it was nice. Taking the time to make sure that happened improved the quality of the meals, since there was planning and more effort involved. I also felt like it was a good thing to finalize the day, a routine to get grounded and unwind, and I went to bed happier. Even if there wasn’t much talking, or if most of it was between my parents, it was still nice to simply sit in their presence without any distractions, and hear what’s up with them. I guess it’s kind of like what checkout is to PSCS.

However, there were two nights where it didn’t work out perfectly. The first was Monday, when I have to leave at 6, about the time my mom gets home, and get back at 9, when my mom starts thinking about going to bed (she gets up at 5 to get to work). The other time was Friday, which was the showcase. Different scheduling things like that, which all of us have, makes it not completely sustainable. Even so, it’s something I get a lot out of, and it’s worth making a habit out of.