Do you insist on saying Grace when it's just you?

[PatterofaMinion]

I am of course grateful for what we eat and I have a half and half belief system, which doesn't sound great I know but I suppose after many years I'm still agnostic.

I don't go to church, or say Grace, or ever pray out loud.

My mother is very Catholic and the other day said a sort of Grace when we were having a casual lunch - despite the fact that it was just me and her in the room, and children who weren't listening.

I wasn't sure why she did it. I know that if there is a God, he can probably hear her thoughts anyway, so why would someone want to do it so that I could hear it too? Tbh it made me a bit cross as she can take things a bit far regarding religion and it crosses over into obsessive-compulsive on occasion. Also I felt as though she was being contentious and/or trying to prove something, ie making some sort of point.

But maybe I am wrong. Is this something that is important to do - to bear witness as it were, in this manner? Hope someone can set me straight.

Well there is not god, so grace is just a casual muttering to me.
My mother says grace, but I just ignore her and sart eating anyway. It's rude to stop people tucking into a meal when they are hungry.

Well she didn't stop me eating...she just sort of said thank you for this lunch, and I said I didn't make it, (as she had brought it with her) and she said she was just thanking God.

I mean yes, that's lovely, but to do it so ostentatiously felt like it wasn't necessary. It felt like she was trying to make a point. I'm not sure what point though.

We say grace as a family, and I say it silently if I am eating on my own. Even if you have no faith (though I do) it can be good to make time for all that you have and to think of those who have less. You might take a look at the lovely Daily Gratitudes thread for ideas. Saying grace before meals is a ritualised way of being grateful that we have good to eat - often we need rituals to make us rember to do something, like brushing teeth, doing pelvic floor exercises, phoning your parents at a particular time ... We all have them. Grace needn't be a prayer (though obviously for Christians it will be). It can just be a moment when you say 'thank you' for all that you have.

(Sorry for spelling and grammar - on phone -I meant saying grace is a way of saying thank you and showing gratitude that we have good things to eat, and remembering those who haven't.)