![]() ![]() We end each blessing with a shared ''Thank you!''Įarth who gives to us this food Sun that makes it ripe and good Dear Earth, Dear Sun, by you we live To you our loving thanks we give. Here are a few that our Unitarian Universalist community and our family use. We also light a candle for each evening meal - makes it nice. These are three that we use - my children learned them at their Waldorf school. Blessings on this meal and peace upon the earth The sun, the earth, the rains and the work of many hands have brought us this food. With head and heart and hands be blessed That each with all may do their best. In this home all are one, As are the earth, the stars and the sun. ''I thank the earth for feeding my body I thank the sun for warming my bones I thank the trees for the air I breathe and I thank the water for nourishing my soul''Īlso, there's a book called Earth Prayers which has some nice blessings and poems from various religious, spiritual, and humanistic traditions. How about something along the lines of: ''We give thanks for the earth and sun and rain that grew and nourished this food, for the many hands that brought it to our table, and for our togetherness as a family.'' If you want to make it more interactive, you could ask: ''What helped to grow this food?'' and kids call out: ''The sun!'' ''The rain!'' ''People who watered the ground!'' ''People who fed the animals!'' etc. It has been a great practice for me too, a welcome shift in perspective if I've had a tough day. ![]() Sometimes we take turns sharing our best and worst moments of the day after saying ''Happy Meal.'' It's very touching seeing how children resonate with even the simplest ritual. ![]() She calls the practice ''Happy Meal'' and will remind us if we forget: ''We forgot to say happy meal, Mom!'' She has even added to it spontaneously, thanking her dad if he did the cooking or me if it was my night to cook. My daughter usually insists that she be the one to say it and it's been very sweet to see how excited she gets about such a simple moment. We're Unitarian and we've never used the word 'God' or thanked any being in particular. We hold hands around the table and one of us says ''Thank you for our food and our family.'' That's it. Last year when my daughter was 3 we started a little mealtime ritual, as I was also wanting to introduce some kind of gratitude and thoughtfulness practice. I can't say if it makes my son recognize how privileged we are, but I hope it's a start. It also has the nice side-effect of appeasing my parents when we visit with them. Sometimes the thankfuls are silly or mundane, like ''I'm thankful it's Friday.'' But sometimes amazing things come out of my son's mouth, like ''I'm thankful that we had a baby, and I get to be a big brother.'' What's been great about this entirely non- theistic approach is that it rarely makes any of our guests (of any age or persuasion) uncomfortable the way that grace can. Surprisingly my atheistic and secular husband was on board. The practice of saying grace is one of several aspects of religion that I missed. It was my suggestion that we begin this, because while I'm not at all religious, I was raised by parents who are devout Christians and say grace at every meal. We simply go around the table and say something we are thankful for. gratefulĪbout a year ago, when my son was five and a half, we started doing ''thankfuls'' with our evening meal. Did this faithfully until my daughter was 3.5 or so and she rejected it. Then we each share 1-3 things we are grateful for that day. We say ''Thank you food for keeping our bodies healthy and strong, and thank you family for sharing this meal with me.'' It has a sing-song-y rhythm that kids remember. IN fact, we need to do them more! Good Luck! I'm sure you will get lots of interesting advice! deirdre We sometimes begin with holding hands and a moment of silence which can feel a bit odd at first, but again, its really very sweet, the sound of silence int he room and the kids like it too.Įach of us gives an appreciation about each other- from simple things, '' I really appreciate mommy for making this yummy dinner' to ' I appreciate xx for really working hard at saying please and thank you today'.' I appreciate xxxx for helping me today when I was not feeling good''.etc. It is super fun and the kids got into very easily and my 3 1/2 year old sometimes spontaneously jumps in and wants to do them. Hi there- We started doing what we call 'appreciations' when we get a chance to all sit down to eat. Thanks in advance for any suggestions!! - Lisa Hello parents, Anyone have any nondenominational type Grace rituals that they can share, that are toddler friendly and fun? Wanting to embrace and teach gratitude and thoughtfulness before our meals. Nondenominational Grace/Giving Thanks before meal
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