We Say “Yay”

A family ritual this informant has is to say “yay” instead of saying “grace.” Informant explained it as so: “Every time we sit down to eat, we all join hands and yell ‘1 2 3 yay’ as loud as we can and then we start eating.” Informant mentioned that her mother grew up very Catholic. As a result, when she left home she decided to rebel and that instead of saying “grace,” she’d say “yay.” Doing this is supposed to be a symbol for pure positive energy with no political or religious connotations and supposed to bring together the informant’s family for a moment of gratitude and love. The informant mentioned that she and her brother were both going to pass along this ritual, and that she likes how anyone can enjoy doing this ritual since it is so non-denominational. This ritual is always done when friends or family come to the informant’s house for a sit-down meal. The reaction to this is positive from all that have done it with the informant and her family. Doing this ritual makes the informant feel closer to her family and happier, since it is something unique to her family. I think this is a great way of remaining unbiased about religion and a good way to raise children. It is not specific enough to really focus on any sort of deity or religion but it is also wholesome and teaches children good morals and how to have gratitude for things in life; it’s not about thanking a higher being but appreciating the things that are present in your life, and this is something I greatly respect and think overshadows most premises of religion.