Saying Grace

Dear family and friends,

I thank our hosts for welcoming us here.
Praise their hospitality to all who will hear.
I thank everyone who helped make this meal.

Thank nature, which gave us all life.
Thank the farmers, who reap the bounty,
And all who transport these goods around the country.
Thank our supermarket, for making all available,
And our hosts, for making a feast veritable.
May Providence smile on you and on your family.

We give thanks to the countless generations of humanity that came before us,
The men, women and children who lived and died before us,
Who lived with the fear of disease and death, with incessant poverty,
But built the world that you and I enjoy
And the standard of life to which we are accustomed,
Making this meal possible.

We give thanks to Providence and its twists and turns,
Presiding over our unlikely birth
And the events of our lives,
Ultimately leading to our common presence around this table tonight.

We give thanks to everyone involved in making this meal possible,
Scientists and engineers, who designed our tools,
Farmers, who made the food grow,
And the truckers and grocers, for making it available to all.

Finally, we give thanks to our gracious hosts,
For organizing and preparing this meal.
We hope they won’t be too unhappy
To see their work chowed down, because we’re all hungry.

In the name of reason, science and freedom, amen.