With today's busy life, fast-foods became popular due to people's need to eat fast to get back to their chores. That is, if they could, they would not have lunch or dinner. Sleeping, eating, resting are seen as a waste of time in the contemporary world. If stopping to eat is no longer highly valued, let alone sitting down to have a meal with someone else.
It is true that inviting someone to lunch when there is something to talk about becomes pleasant, but this is not always the case with the people we live with in our homes. As Professor Mário Sérgio Cortella talks about in his lectures, the arrival of televisions in homes completely changed the routine of families.
In the old days, everyone gathered around the table for meals.. They commented on the day's events, expectations and shared feelings. Also because it was a time when great distances could not be overcome daily, so the parents used to work close to home and often returned to have lunch with the family. With the arrival of televisions, while people were talking and listening to their own conversations, the new device began to monopolize the attention of everyone at the table. The chairs and sofas began not to be arranged in circles in the house, but around the television.
Due to the high flow of Italian immigration in the early XNUMXth century, many Spanish families grew up with tables full of pasta, children and conversations with voices so loud that it seemed like a fight between adults. Addressing this Italian culture, a scene from the movie The Godfather reflects well this situation and the seriousness that these families took in their meals. When a member suggests talking about business, the head of the family says that this type of subject cannot be addressed while people are eating, thus showing the seriousness that family meals represented for those people.
Finally, remember that everything in life is temporary. Having the opportunity to have a meal with people you love won't last forever. Today you can, but tomorrow will be a mystery. So not only enjoy the food, but also enjoy the company you have present at this time.
Text written by Diego Rennan from the Eu Sem Fronteiras Team
