The Magic Bullet

“What if I told you that there was a magic bullet—something that would improve the quality of your daily life, your children’s chances of success in the world, your family’s health, our values as a society? Something that is inexpensive, simple to produce and within the reach of pretty much anyone? Miriam Weinstein begins her book ‘The Surprising Power of Family Meals’ with those two questions and then suggests that the ‘magic bullet’ missed by so many families is as simple as a shared meal. A 2003 survey indicated that children and teens who share dinner with their families five or more nights a week were far less likely to have tried alcohol, cigarettes or marijuana. ‘Those who eat lots of family dinners are almost twice as likely to get A’s in school as their classmates who rarely eat as a family.’ Now that’s something to chew on. Launch a revolution. Have dinner as a family.” —Albert Mohler