Every one of us boomers comes from parents who were products of The Depression through the Korean War. Our folks have seen hard times, and times of not having but wanting. Whether they were influenced by soup lines or ration stamps, they ingrained in most of us the value of an item.

          As we were growing, we faced meal times as an event. For my family it was chicken on Friday, fish on Saturday, and a roast on Sunday. Every meal was complete with at least two vegetables. As a child, the vegetables were a priority to my mother. “Eat your vegetables. They are good for you and you will stay at the table until you do”. I know there were times I hated that statement, especially when it was Brussels spouts. But, we did as we were told. We ate them. We didn’t argue or complain because that would only bring on more vegetables.

          It has recently been reported on the news that our generation will have a better chance of living longer than our offspring. At times I find this hard to believe. The current generation doesn’t drink like we do (or did). They smoke less and supposedly are more interested in being more organic in their eating than we were. If that is the case, then why are we going to live longer? Maybe it is the vegetables or sitting down to a home cooked meal that was more of an event than a modern day feeding frenzy. Our meals with our parents were lengthy, often lasting 30 minute to an hour. The meals were also balanced. We had a protein (meat or bean), carbohydrate (breads potatoes, or rice), and steady supply of vitamins ( those vegetables). Believe it or not, we were balanced in our diet. Now, I know that on the table were also bowls of gravy, sticks of butter, and often the meat item was fried, but the good qualities were prevalent.

          We need to keep it up. Although we may not have enjoyed it back when we were kids, we benefited. We need to pass on that benefit to our children and if not them then to our grandchildren. Sit down with the kids with a home cooked meal that has the essentials. When the kids look strangely at you simply tell them to …“Eat your vegetables. They are good for you and you will stay at the table until you do”.  You will be doing them a favor.