The family dinner table is the cornerstone of civilization and those who ‘graze’ from refrigerators or in front of the television sets are doomed to remain in a state of savagery.

Judith Martin

Monday morning we said goodbye to our generous hosts in Pensacola and pointed the Subaru due east into the sun.

By late afternoon, having driven the entire northern edge of Florida courtesy of the relentless, tedious, interminable Interstate 10, Rebekah and I finally landed in Jacksonville in time to join her brother Jesse – and Heather – for the weekly Alexander family dinner.

So we enjoyed the privilege of being with three of our nieces and nephews (Sarah, Seth and Jared) along with Seth’s fiancée, Miranda and Jared’s partner, Samantha.

The crowd of twenty-somethings made for quite the contrast from dinner at the Azalea Trace retirement community in Pensacola this weekend, when we shared a table with people at the other end of the age spectrum. Both occasions, however, were full with stories, laughter, memories, love and more.

Jacksonville has become a welcome and encouraging way-station for us this year on our frequent sojourns to Orlando and we are grateful for the love and for the prayers.

There is a lot of talk in our country about lost values and the loss of community and loss of the simple courtesies that mark civil discourse. It occurs to me that the above quote from Judith Martin is especially apropos to this exact question.

Family dinner together is an invitation into great conversation, laughter, keeping things in perspective, encouragement, the exchange of views, mutual tolerance, love and shared devotions.

It is, in fact, more than civilizing, it is something holy. In truth, in the breaking of bread and the offering of prayers, family dinner is the kind of communion this world needs.

Peace and love – DEREK