is it the food or the meal and the importance of ceremony

 At the end of camp last week we did a thankful circle and a lot of the boys said they were thankful for the food and I have a couple thoughts on that

1- food is a safe thing for boys to be thankful for. it's necessary for survival and no one can accuse them of being overly sentimental for liking it

2- teenage boys love food

3- I would argue that part of the reason the food was enjoyed was because the meals had ceremony to them. We started the meals by gathering outside the lodge and singing and recognizing things that had happened. We had a ritual for entering the lodge and a song we sang before everyone was seated. We let people serve themselves so they decided their plate and portions. We sat as cabins and everyone knew how the meals operated. All of the things surrounding the food made the food feel significant and good.

I present these other examples of ceremony as evidence:

1- In Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, it seems odd that Cassius and Brutus are worried about Caesar's coronation because he already wields absolute power anyway. The argument I read in a footnote in college was that this is because of the importance of the ceremony. The formal announcement of Caesar's power and status makes all the difference.

2- Charlie Brown Christmas Tree. When the Peanuts kids decorate and scream-sing Hark the Herald Angels Sing, the true meaning of Christmas is revealed. It's not just a hollow act of consumerism that Charlie Brown is lamenting at the beginning of the movie, it's a true communion.

3- I forget what the third one was.

Ritual is a powerful thing.