Stories Around the Dinner Table

Every year around the holiday season, when my my family and I sit at our dining table and have dinner, my parents always tell the story of how when I was younger, I couldn’t even reach or see the top of the dining table. I would always stand on my tippy-toes and try to see what was on the table but was too short to. This story sets a nostalgic tone to our dinner as we reminisce on older times and laugh at our childhood antics. My parents always recount my childhood stories keep those memories and moments alive. Perhaps they valued these moments very much and they want to never forget these moments. Storytelling allows families to pass down memories, values and culture. 

My parents also keep the memory of my grandfathers alive by telling us stories that reflect their personality, ambitions and traits. My grandfathers passed away early and so I never got to meet them. However, through the stories my parents tell about them, I feel as if I have interacted with them and have a strong connection with them. While telling stories about my relatives, my parents emphasize their positive traits through anecdotes and encourage my sister and I to adopt these same traits to become better people and make a positive impact on the world. Even though these stories may be slightly biased because they are told through first-person narration, they serve the purpose of instilling family values, culture and memories. It is through my family’s stories that I am able to feel connected to my culture, my relatives in India even with the generational, geographic and cultural barriers, 

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