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I must say that when I went to primary school (a long, long, time ago)we said Grace. It was said by rote with no real feeling & seemed just a formality & a nuisance stopping us from our food at the time. I think that sort of empty ritual has about as much spiritual value as saying the times tables!

Now I'm older I can see the value of a sincere 'thank you' to Mother Earth for providing the food on our plate- so I guess I agree in part at least with what Bob was saying...shame he hasn't dropped by again to chat about his thoughts.

Though I am the same way in often forgetting to be thankful for what I am about to eat, I do think it is something that is very important. I also think that it would be a great rite-of-passage for all that choose to eat meat (me included) to, at some time in their life, have to kill and dress something they are going to eat. Whether it be a chicken or a deer. Some boys get this experience, but I think few girls ever have this experience. I think I would cry through the entire experience, but I also think I would appreciate eating meat that much more after... Regardless of if your meat is packaged in plastic and styrofoam, something died so that you could be nourished... I think most of us take this for granted most of the time.

I guess the same is true for plants, though I can't get myself to think of it in the same way. For me, I think more of the farmers who have given their sweat and work to supply me with produce... We should be thankful for that as well...

I guess that's a good reason for me to stay veggie! Fleas & headlice are about the limit of things I ever intentionally kill...don't fancy nibbling on them

LOL they might make a tasty treat! LOL

LOL yuck Jase!! oooo!

I tend to pray and thank God for the food and ask that it doesnt make me fatter!!! lol and if it is something I grow or someone else grows and gave to me I thank the plant and the person who grow it and God for letting it live!!

I tend to think of all things meat like a tv dinner it came from the store and I baought it so thank you God for letting me make the money to by the food!!!

my mom is a veggie person and never eats meat so I dont like to think about poor daisy the cow being m y dinner!!!

At our meals, we do pray for each other and give thanks for the food and our lives together. Closer however I think to what you are asking is the prayer of thanks I find myself always giving when I cut herbs or pull veggies out of the garden for our meals. I thank the plant itself, not God or ourselves for growing it. I must confess though, that I find it hard to be that intimate with something from the grocery store.

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Bugs are a delicacy in some areas!!

you can have my share I will fast but thanks anyways!!!


(I wanted to say YUCK!!! But i thought the above sounded nicer!!!)

I need to chime in here as I am Native American and spent the first 27 years of my life on our Sett.
All this past tense reference to us is a bit unnerving, as in we " used to" pray for the animal we ate and so on. This is not in the past for us - this continues!
Also, the part about maize ( corn ) is not accurate in that not all tribes were growing this crop. Nor did all tribes save plains tribes follow the food. California tribes and others had fishing and other readily year-long available sources of food.
Although we may not still roam looking for buffalo, many many natives still hunt the food they eat.
And when we get our govt. commodity food, it is powdered milk, powdered eggs etc.,,and the old standby- Spam! So I am also confused about that being brought up jokingly.
If it weren't for the commods and that Spam many elders, especially amongst the Lakotas , would die. They are starving on what is essentially a 3rd world nation ( Pine Ridge ) in the middle of America.
Not trying to be a downer here, but please don't discuss my people in the past tense. We are still here, we still practice our ways.

That's great to hear, and it's great to hear that Native Americans are still keeping their traditions alive. There is so much wisdom that has been lost already. It would be a shame if it were allowed to continue...