家庭圍餐的力量

It’s hard for me to forget about dinner. My thirteen year-old daughter， Alyssa， poses the

same question daily. “What are we having for dinner?” she asks， usually in the early afternoon. Her inquiry makes me think， because I can tell that the answer is important to her. After I tell her what’s on the evening menu， she goes about her day with calm assurance. It’s as if looking forward to dinner makes the rest of the day go smoother for Alyssa. Talking to Janet Peterson， author of the book，

Remedies For the “I Don’t Cook Syndrome，” I’ve

discovered that Alyssa isn’t alone in anticipating

her evening meal. Peterson says， “Eating dinner

together regularly provides more than good

nutrition; it enables family members to share their

days with each other， relax， laugh， discuss social

issues and strengthen family relationships.”

Why should we eat together?

1. Family bonding. Eating a family meal creates

an environment that 1)fosters family conversation.

2. Eating at home saves money. “Restaurants

are in the business to make money，” says

Peterson. “Their labors， real estate and 2)profit

margin all cost. If they don’t make money， they

don’t stay in business.”

要我忘記晚餐這件事情非常困難。我

那13歲大的女兒艾麗莎每天都會(huì)問我同一個(gè)問題：“今天晚餐吃什么？”通常，才剛到下午她就會(huì)這么問。她這么一問讓我得好好去想，因?yàn)槲衣牭贸龃鸢笇λ苤匾Ｂ犃宋业耐聿筒藛沃螅徽於紩?huì)怡然淡定。仿佛對晚餐的期待會(huì)讓艾麗莎一天接下來的時(shí)間都事事順利。

珍妮特·皮特森是《拯救“不做飯癥候群”》一書的作者。和她交談時(shí)，我發(fā)現(xiàn)艾麗莎并非唯一如此期待晚餐的人。皮特森說：“定期進(jìn)行家庭圍餐提供的益處遠(yuǎn)勝于良好的營養(yǎng)；它讓各個(gè)家庭成員能彼此分享一天的見聞、放松身心、開懷大笑、討論社會(huì)問題，還能鞏固家庭關(guān)系。”

為什么要圍餐？

1、建立親密的家庭紐帶。家庭圍餐能創(chuàng)造出一個(gè)共敘天倫的環(huán)境。

2、在家吃飯省錢。皮特森說：“餐館是做生意賺錢的。雇員薪金、店鋪?zhàn)饨稹⒗麧櫠际清X。如果他們不賺錢，他們也無法繼續(xù)營業(yè)。”

5. Keep the meals simple. Elaborate meals are not necessary for quality family time. To save time and effort， keep the meals simple and easy to prepare. Save the elaborate menus for rarer occasions when you have time to prepare them.

6. Involve family members in meal preparation. Peterson explains that some children may be old enough to fix meals by themselves， and most children can assist in meal preparation. By helping in the kitchen， children learn what it takes to make a meal. They also learn that it’s a priority in the family.

7. Turn off the television， let the machine get the phone. Make sure dinnertime belongs only to you by letting the answering machine take phone calls， turning off the television， and putting away the newspaper. If your family usually watches TV during dinner， begin with one or two meals with the TV off， and gradually increase the number as time goes on.

8. Keep an 6)upbeat atmosphere. Make dinnertime enjoyable with positive conversation， expressions of love， and moments of laughter. It’s a time to connect with each other. Don’t use dinnertime to resolve problems or to remind children of assignments.

9. Teach by example. Begin early as 7)newlyweds and then later with young children to have regular， nutritious， and pleasant meals together， so that dinner is an expected part of the family routine. Have a weekly planning meeting that includes putting dinner on the schedule.

View dinnertime as a precious time to talk together， to reinforce family values， to discuss issues， and to express love to each other.

5、簡簡單單就好。享受家庭美好時(shí)光不一定要?jiǎng)趲焺?dòng)眾炮制滿桌佳肴。節(jié)省時(shí)間和精力，保持晚飯精簡易做。日后有充足時(shí)間且機(jī)會(huì)難得時(shí)再用上這些繁復(fù)講究的菜單吧。

6、和家人一起做飯。皮特森解釋說，一些孩子可能已經(jīng)足夠大，可以自己做飯了，而大多數(shù)孩子在做飯時(shí)都能打下手。孩子們通過在廚房里幫忙學(xué)習(xí)怎樣才能做出一頓飯菜，也能認(rèn)識(shí)到這是家庭的首要事情。

7、關(guān)掉電視，開啟語音留言。確保用餐時(shí)間完全屬于你們，讓電話答錄機(jī)接收電話，關(guān)掉電視，把報(bào)紙放一邊。……