“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” — Howard Thurman
Fifty-three weeks of daily meals together starts now. Why? The idea for this blog has been a long time germinating. Three factors within a short time span, though, made me actually get online and put idea to technology:
1. A conversation with my 12-year-old son’s rock climbing coach: Love him, but he is wreaking havoc on my sweet family’s life. For those of you blissfully ignorant, youth indoor rock climbing is a year-round sport. It is crack to my son, Noah. What started out as an after-school one-day-a-week interest has now become a five-day, 20-hour (if you including driving) commitment. But he’s continental champion in speed climbing and it might be an Olympic sport. So what’s a parent to do? Anyway, so Crazy Coach decides to practice from 3:30-7 pm three nights a week. He considers making it 4-7:30 when I call deal breaker. “Why?” he asks in surprise. Dinner.
2. The year anniversary of my first trip to Africa: I went to Rwanda with four others from church in September 2008. Since that trip, I crave Africa — like you crave the smell of your newborn baby’s head or ice water when it’s 102 outside and you’re in an asphalt parking lot with a dead battery. But I have a husband, two kids, two dogs, two guinea pigs, a lizard, and a bank account that’s seen better days. This will, for the moment, ease the craving.
3. The recession tanked my already gurgling-for-air profession: I’ve known I wanted to be a journalist since I was in high school. Worked for newspapers, magazines, and have been freelancing since 1995. Loved it. Am lost without it. I know it’s not really gone … but it’s definitely in transition. So I decided I should be as well and here I am.
Dinner — and great haunted house! — at the Garcias
These events — perfectly timed with creative coaching sessions with my friend Jill Bryan and the movie Julie & Julia — translated into feeding my family, feeding Africa, and feeding my soul with this blog project. This, for now, makes me come alive (see quote above if you’ve already forgotten).
Day one turns out easy. Our boys are getting together with two other boys to create a post-Halloween haunted house. We’re headed to the friends’ house for some skeletons and salsa. Day one meal together: Check. Just 370 left to enjoy.
I absolutely promise that I am not just saying this because I was your coach, am your friend, and believe you to be one of the smartest, funniest and kindest people I know – but this blog is going to rock the world! I love it. (Add Africa and Creative Coaching to your tags and I’d give you an A+ – if I gave grades, which you know that I don’t!) Sign me up for my delicious daily serving of “Bringing Dinner Back!”
You’re sweet. And I’m still adding tags and trying to figure that all out. You will be interested to know that Jill Bryan was my first hyperlink. Making me feel very high-tech.
I absolutely adore this…and YOU for doing it! What an amazing combination of creativity and things you LOVE. It’s fun, it’s smart, it’s mission and it takes my mind off the sermon I’m not writing at the moment…Later dude…
thanks, marti! glad i could be helpful early on a saturday morning. did you see i hyperlinked GHUMC? so high-tech i am these days!
Marti sent me this link, Dawn! I love what you’re attempting. I grew up eating dinner with my family (2 parents, 3 siblings) every night, but that was WAY before the days of insane athletic/dance/theater/music schedules! I’ve got a four-year old and our family tries to eat dinner together every night – setting a precedent for the future, I hope.
Thanks so much for your support, Mary Beth. I fear people just give up in this climate of overscheduling. Sure, my kids are way busier than I’d like them to be. But I, like you, feel it is so important. Sometimes we eat at 7:45 just to accommodate. Such an important time in our day, though. Thanks so much for reading!
awesome dawn. i look forward to my daily dose.
[...] so it began, one year ago today – my commitment to, among other things, bring my family together around the kitchen table for a [...]