Great-Great-Grandpa Came to Dinner

Dinnertime in our family was often hectic. The teenagers would rush off to school or Church functions, the younger children would be tired and hungry, and my husband would be exhausted from a long day at work. I wanted to do something to make dinner a pleasant time, a time the family would enjoy being together. Then I “invited” Great-Great-Grandpa to dinner.

I was helping one of my sons prepare a Primary talk about an ancestor. As we looked through books and photographs and read pioneer stories, I realized how important it was for my children to get to know their ancestors. That evening at dinner I told a story about Great-Great-Grandpa’s life and began a discussion about him. The children were enthralled.

The discussion went so well that I decided I would spend a few minutes every day reading something about one of our ancestors and then sharing it with my family at dinnertime. A wonderful thing happened. The children loved the discussions and looked forward to our evening meals. We all learned a lot about our family history. Now we also have discussions about the Presidents of the Church, other Church leaders, and heroes from the scriptures. Everyone takes a turn researching and leading the discussions.

Now when I call the family to dinner, I don’t hear “I can’t come to dinner tonight” nearly as often as “All right! I wonder who’s coming tonight.”—Lora McAllister, Salt Lake City, Utah