I actually DO have something to contribute here.
Before my marriage exploded, one of the fixes I tried to institute was a return to the dinner table -Complete with saying Grace, and a devotional before closing. The whole trad thing.
It obviously didn't work. My wife was stone-dead against it - claiming it took way too much time away from baths and getting ready for bed, and generally putting the house away for the night.
It was a really weird time. Very uncomfortable to institute. I worked so much that I barely knew my kids. Seriously. And here I was trying to say grace over em. And it was really uncomfortable for them, too... Strange.
But I'll tell you what, that was probably some of the most cherished times I have. After the weird went by, my daughters started coming up with ways to decorate the table... place mats, floral arrangements, and etc... On their own, they started making the thing more formal, and more beautiful, providing a marvelous setting... and I went out of my way to do the cooking, and made things that I knew my family thought were delicious.
And the devotional became real Bible study. Real conversation about God.
It became holy. Holy means 'set apart'... Different from the rest, in a good way. Yes, it took some time. Yes, it was harder to set up, and harder to clean up. But it became such a restful thing. Quality. Family.
There's something to it.
