The most beautiful thing about my family is the way we make our decisions about everything that concerns the family well being. It has been a tradition among us for as long as I could remember, we sit together in circle like board of directors whenever something pops up and there is need to brainstorm collectively. The funny thing about this is that it doesn't necessarily has to be something tangible at times, it might be something as small as change of chores routine but we find ourselves sitting with our parents discussing how exactly we need to go about it.
I mean my parents could have easily commanded the change of activities without seeking our opinion just like any other Nigerian parents but no, they care more about how we feel about their suggestions. This act has made us grown confident in the fact that we have a say in matters that concerns the family which is actually true. Though most times it is usually the family finances, probably my mom finally decides to take her business in another direction and she feels it might take away her attention from the family for a while and the only way she can come to conclusion about what to do is to seek our opinion.
Most times we agree with her because we are aware of the fact that she must have thought about it a lot before bringing it up. Moreover anything she does is for the family best interest, this is also applicable to my dad though once in awhile he always tries to pull up the man of the house stunt but we have a way of making him understand that it is either we move together or we don't move at all and he always get the gists. This meeting most times usually takes place immediately after morning devotion or after dinner. Though there are times I grumble a little whenever we are called for a meeting in the morning. It usually begins with little talks before we get into the real gist which might take some time.
Concerning dinner, we mostly do everything together but for dinner it is more than just a meal. For as far back as I can remember we sit down on the dinning table and wait for my mom to serve the food but as we grew older it became the children's duty to serve the food on the table and we pass it round but there is a trick there. No matter how hungry anybody is, you dare not start eating without saying grace, I personally have fell victim to this couple of times. It doesn't really matter who but the rule is the rule and my mom is the one that keeps everyone in check, well she is the most religious among us all.
When I said it is more than just a meal, most times immediately after dinner, we discuss important matters before going to bed and believe me you don't want to be the topic of discussion because you will surely go to sleep with a not so pleasant mood. At that moment after meal my parents are fully energetic to scold anyone moreover dinner is one of the only time we all sit together and sometimes during breakfast but my dad always goes out very early. There are a lot of benefits to we eating dinner together as a family and my favourite of it all is, it offers us the opportunity to seek out our parents. Probably anyone needs extra financial assistance, one of the best time to ask is after dinner because my parents are usually relaxed during that time as long as no one has done anything to spook them.
Does it affect the dynamics of family bonding? Definitely yes, I don't know how it is for other families but for mine, we feel a lot closer when we do things together. I mean what is the point of being a family without time to bond, eating meals together kind of offers such privilege. I wouldn't know otherwise because it is the kind of life I'm used to and it is something I would love to inculcate when I have a family of my own.
This write-up was inspired by weekly featured content titled "Knowing first Aid" in hive learners community.
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