There is a Vietnamese proverb that teaches, “Trời đánh còn tránh miếng ăn,” which means “Even God’s thunderbolts avoid meal time.” Through this humorous verse, the ancestors wanted to highlight the importance of respecting others’ eating and resting periods - even when they’re your enemies on the battlefield.

In fact, some legends cited that even the god of thunderbolts, Thiên Lôi - whose job was to send lighting as punishment upon the wicked - would avoid striking while his targets are in the middle of eating. Because no one, not even the most unrighteous, deserves the indignity of a disrupted meal.

Any foreign expat who lives in Vietnam can tell you that it is highly frowned upon to visit someone’s house between the hours of noon to 1pm, as that time is preemptively blocked for lunch and midday nap. Even restaurants, shops, and street vendors would typically close their businesses during this time for much deserved rest.

This profound honor for one’s most important repose period of the day is deeply ingrained in the Vietnamese culture since our dawn of time, and admittedly, is one that I’ve been struggling to retrain myself to discover again.

I grew up in the hustle and bustle of American work culture since the age of 10. I’m a typical American worker who spent all of my professional life scarfing down my 5-minute lunches at my desk in between juggling phone calls and deadlines. For some reason, I felt it was a badge of honor to pause my lunch to address any impromptu question anyone who walked up to my desk had at any given time.

And I’m guilty of contributing to the problem myself. When I saw someone had blocked out time on their full calendar for lunch, I interpreted that as “this time slot is flexible and available for a quick meeting.” Many times, I’ve walked up to a colleague and rudely interrupted them while they were still chewing their sandwich, just because “Hey, I just have a quick question.” My behavior would have deeply disappointed Thiên Lôi, the god of thunder himself.

The major events in the last 5 years have forced me to slow down, go inward, and rediscover the wisdom that the greats before me have laid at the foundation of my character and success. And I just have to remember that while, yes, the ancestors have passed on to me their unbreakable strength, resilience, and unrelenting work ethics…they have also given me the permission to rest, to enjoy a meal in dignified, uninterrupted peace.