Clean Plate

So recently I've been noticing how people eat, especially with how much they leave on their plate. I'm one to finish everything on my plate. With food proportions nowadays, a lot of times I will reach a point of being full, but there is still some food left on my plate. Sometimes I'll bring home leftovers, but usually there's not enough for me to ask for a box, so I'll finish it there, even if that means becoming uncomfortably full.

 It's weird to me that some people would eat their meal and not finish the last two bites (which are sometimes the best bites, more on that later). I had a friend who would do this at every meal. At first, I thought he was just full, but after I noticed it happened every time, I thought maybe it was something else. I saw him do it in a very non-formal setting, so I figured for him it was kind of a mental tendency he developed. That every time he saw that little food left, his mind told him not to eat anymore because there's nothing left to eat. Makes me think of eating an apple or watermelon slice. I usually stop when I get to the core (seeds) of an apple or white part of a watermelon slice. But maybe other people think I'm weird because they eat the core of an apple or they eat the white (maybe even the green?) part of a watermelon slice. If I saw someone eat that I would think it was a little weird. Is that what this friend thinks of me when I eat those last two bites? Does he think, "how does this kid eat those last bites, pick those last pieces of food? Why is he stuffing himself? Why is he 'ruining' his meal? Just to be polite?"

I read that in some European countries, a clean plate means you want more food, and leaving a little bit means you're done/satisfied. And in China, "clearing a plate is considered rude, yet in America, it can send a non-verbal message that your food was delicious and was much appreciated."

When I was young my brother told me to eat all my food because of all the 'starving kids in Africa.' Momma would tell me to eat everything. I guess that's when it started. I think a lot of my mentality now is, if the whoever made the meal cooked this much, it was for this much food to be eaten. That and habit, I guess. Just used to doing it the way I've been doing it. I don't know. Jumbled thoughts.

Final thought: food is delicious.