By the time I made it to high school my oldest sister had left home, and very soon my middle sister did, too, so it was just me, Mom, and Dad. I went through a brief phase of challenging them at the dinner table over their various bigotries, prejudices, political leanings, or other things I disagreed with, but that phase was brief. I soon figured out that arguing with sober people could be productive, but when opinion is fueled by several cocktails, reason always seems to lose out.
So pretty soon I left my parents alone at the dinner table to bicker among themselves, and that seemed fine with them. The dinner table as family gathering spot is charming and heart-warming only when the family actually wants to be together, no matter how nice the table and matching chairs.
I understand why politicians use the kitchen table as a metaphor for American family dynamics. I think it’s a pretty good one, actually, even when your memories of those times are not all pleasant. At least we all sat down together for an hour or so with no music, no television, and no video games to distract us. There’s nothing like silence to bring out the best and worst in family function (or dysfunction).
So while I don’t necessarily think back fondly on those times around the dinner table, I do wish I had any of the great-looking kitchen tables featured this week. Perhaps if my family had gathered around a pink cracked-ice vinyl and chrome dinette instead of a fake-wood model from Sears, we would have been happier.
This article was last modified on May 18, 2023
This article was first published on October 10, 2008
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