I'm just having a meal, why so much fuss?

Do you remember when you were kids, did your grandma's meals always have to be so elaborate?

1Seating positions before a meal also have their own rules:

I don't understand everything, let me explain my family's customs. When we were at home, we ate in the living room. The dining table was right in front of the entrance, and the main seat, where the elders sat, was the furthest position from the entrance and the table itself. The younger generation sat on either side, and the youngest children sat closest to the entrance.

2After everyone is seated, you must wait for the elders to start eating and picking up their chopsticks before you can start eating and picking up your own chopsticks. Younger people and children must not start eating before the elders do.

3When picking up food, you can only pick up the dishes facing you. You shouldn't repeatedly flip dishes in the serving plates; just pick up the dish you've picked up.

4If someone else's chopsticks touch yours while eating, you must let the elders pick up their chopsticks first.

5When someone else is finishing their meal and their hands are still raised, you shouldn't reach across their hands to pick up another dish.

6During a meal, you should hold your bowl with your hands to eat, not placing the bowl on the table and lowering your head to eat, which will be scolded by the elders: 'You don't have hands?'

7You must also wait for the elders to drink soup before you can drink soup. If the elders don't want to drink soup, you can ask them if they want to drink it, and you can then drink the soup.

8You shouldn't make sloppy eating motions, which will be scolded as being unrefined.

9If you are a guest in someone's home, when you see that the guest's bowl is empty, the younger generation should proactively offer to help refill their bowl. However, if the guest declines, you shouldn't insist on refilling.

10If the seats are just right, and only one seat is left, the youngest person must stand and eat or pick up some dishes to eat in their bowl while sitting next to the table.

I'm referring to the younger generation who is capable of doing housework and is considerate.

However, times have changed, and there are no rules when there are no guests.

But when there are guests, it's still necessary to observe these rules, or you'll receive a scolding from your elders after they leave.