Meagan Wilson

Over the years we have sung and said many blessings at our table. Saying or singing a blessing when you sit down together helps everyone to slow down and center before eating. It also fosters a deep sense of gratitude.

I recently revisited some of our favourite blessings and rewrote them to emphasize our gratitude in a secular and gender-neutral way.

I wanted to honour the elements, the seed, earth and the farmers without labeling them as Father, Mother, Sister or Brother, simply because the idea of certain elements being masculine or feminine is a cultural one that varies by climate & region. For example, in many Aboriginal Australian stories the Sun is a woman and the Moon is a man.

When telling a story from a particular place and time I would stay true to that culture’s gender-attributions, but in blessings I sometimes like to leave more room for open-ended expression and freedom, especially in a multicultural home or classroom.

This is such a tiny, simple change that many might not see the need for, but one I am enjoying reflecting on and playing with. There is so much freedom to be found when we ask ourselves why we do the things that we do.