Starting a Conversation
January 23, 2012
We used some conversation starters recently at the end of a big, four-generation, family meal. You would think that after all our years together, we would know everything about each other, but asking and answering these questions helped us learn some fun things about the others and ourselves. Here are some of the surprises:
When my mother-in-law was a child, she wanted to be a ballerina.
Two of my pet peeves involve apostrophes. (I now am officially a grammar geek.)
If my sister-in-law could trade places with anyone for a day, she would choose someone who was just reaching the summit of a very high mountain.
One young woman, who was asked what she hoped would be her main accomplishment in life, said she wanted to have a successful career and be a mother. Wishing for a balanced life is not that surprising — unless you had known this person through the extremes of her teenage years!
Some conversation starters were more topic-oriented. These were geared toward self-exposure. (We agreed that anyone could skip any question or refuse to play entirely.)
The idea can feel forced, but it kept us talking — both around the table and afterward. And, isn't that one of the satisfactions of family meals?
Mealtimes Matter Video
from Miriam Weinstein
About Miriam
Miriam Weinstein is an award-winning documentary filmmaker. As a journalist, she has won several awards from the New England Press Association. Her work has appeared in Boston Magazine, the Boston Globe magazine, Hope, and ParentSource. A former staff member for North Shore Weeklies and freelancer for Essex County Newspapers, she writes restaurant reviews and food columns as well as features on a wide variety of subjects. She lives in Gloucester, Massachusetts, with her husband and has two grown children.
The Surprising Power of Family Meals
In her book, The Surprising Power of Family Meals, Miriam Weinstein shows how this basic human institution helps nourish and strengthen our families today.