So, When I was growing up we would pray all the time before meals, and I think my parents are awesome, I think they were awesome, I think they're still awesome.

It was a great upbringing, but it was an upbringing in a certain era with certain sensibilities and times change and things happen and meanings change and

somewhere along the way to be around a lot of Christian stuff as a kid I started to feel like the prayer before meals thing was a little bit

obligatory. The prayers weren't usually terribly insightful or even formulaic. It just kind of happened. It was probably good in its own way because you're

saying that we acknowledge God and we're thankful even if the prayers are a little bit

stale or whatever but by the time I got to college, interesting is Jeff Foote, the guy who edits the

podcast and does all the music so well, his cousin was a guy I went to college with.

And when we were to Christian college, I think all of us were coming out of the same kind of experience and background.

And I remember one day we're sitting there at the table and he does a big dramatic folding of the

hands.

I'm like, that seemed a little bit much. Then he bowed his head deeply and

squinted and grunted. Dude, okay? That's way too much. It took me a minute to catch on to

that he was lampooning some of these habits and then I heard him start to mutter under his breath

seven eight nine ten

a man then he put his head out oh, I see what you're doing.

Okay, that resonates with me.

Yes, prayer can become perfunctory.

It can become a thing that isn't terribly well thought through.

That's probably better than not prayer at all I don't know they

still pray before meals sometimes out loud sometimes not out loud sometimes I

forget I don't know what I'm doing I told you I'm not any good at praying

I'm still figuring stuff out.

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