Regardless of your religious persuasion, you must admit that part of saying grace before meals is simply the ability to be present with your Western Double Cheeseburger or your Teriyaki Chicken breast for a just a brief moment before you start tearing into it like a junkyard dog on the trail of a left over jerky treat.

That momentary, reflective pause before the initial bite is as much about:  

–Noticing the food while you have it.

–Enjoying the company of those who are with you while you eat it.

–Respecting that the food actually, as if by magic, made it to your table.  

–Showing gratitude for an abundant universe.

–Acknowledging that you’ll eat again today, when so many won’t.

But in this slap-dash, on-the-go, hundred mile an hour, microwave, Dino-Nugget world, we don’t often take the time to be present with our food.  

But there’s no reason you can’t start now.

It doesn’t have to be a fancy dinner or a special occasion.  In fact, I got the idea for this blog post ten minutes ago simply because I made it a point to sit still in front of some left over Fettucine Alfredo and a glass of lemonade.  Hardly a feast fit for royalty.  And yet, it was that simple.

But if you want it to be a special occasion, by all means:

–invite someone over.
–light a candle.
–play soft music

(You can do the last two, by the way, even if you don’t invite someone special over. 

And I have. 

And it’s been glorious.)

So no matter how limited your resources or how humble the spread, try to remember to take some time just to honor your food and be both present with it and grateful for it.

And finally:

Consider putting down the fork between bites.

Chew slowly.

Really taste it.

And with the right mindful attitude, you can even make the clean-up and dish-doing a mindful transcendent experience.

Why is this so important?

Because taking the time to be still and acknowledge and respect the food in front of you isn’t only about saying grace, it’s about exhibiting it.  TZT