Fiesta!
July 21, 2008
On a recent summer night, my friends and I made our annual visit to St. Peter's Fiesta. We checked out the games of chance, listened to a couple of stunningly amateurish bands, and did some tremendous people-watching. I also ate my yearly sausage and pepper sandwich, washed down by hand-squeezed lemonade.
We all know that these events are nutritional minefields, and we all have our must-have festival foods.
This year, I was struck by how many people had managed to create some fairground version of the family meal. Folding chairs under a tent were drawn up in tight circles. Picnic tables were available for families, and families were colonizing them, creating little homes away from home. They ate more or less facing each other. Parents exerted some sort of control, both in terms of behavior and food choices.
These events are separate from our regular workaday routines, and we can enjoy them as such. We can set limits and have our treats. We can be families even in the middle of large crowds. We carry a bit of ourselves while moving out beyond our regular worlds. Buona Fiesta everyone!
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. You can buy this book from our friends at Smucker's® Online Store.
