About a week ago, I got into a coffee machine chat with a colleague a few years older than I. She was talking about how, when she moved the last time, she put out her sterling at a yard sale and got rid of it. Of course, I cursed my bad luck at not being there for the yard sale, but at the same time I inquired why she had sold all her silver so unceremoniously. Her answer was that they did not entertain formally any longer, and, besides, it took a lot of extra work to polish the silver. She came from a southern family where silver was an expectation of marriage and dining. As an older adult, living far from the South, she no longer saw the need to hold onto that convention. I think her approach is typical of many people, young and old, who no longer are interested in sterling flatware and serving pieces. It is true that we have entered the self-serve world of dining, but I wonder if we have lost something along the way. At my daughters university in Pennsylvania, they are offering a class to graduating seniors on manners, including how to eat properly. Now before everyone screams that this is evidence of the decay of humanity, I have to point out that manner books have been around for centuries. Learning to set a table, keep your elbows off of it while dining, and not drink the finger bowl is something that authors have written about for hundreds of years. What is troubling is that the class is about very fundamental skills like cutting food with a knife. Having seen a few of her friends at our house for dinner, I can attest this class is important.We have more Fred Flintstone than Miss Manners. Somewhere we have lost the path. One can argue that with most of us having two working parents that the formality of the table has been lost. And yet, when my wife worked at Williamsburg, she met many a young lady who had or wanted a flatware set as the ideal wedding gift. So, I do not think formal dining is totally dead! Another thought is that the abundance of pre-cooked meals in plastic containers has meant that we no longer have time or interest in either cooking or dining. I would have agreed with that until Covid. With restrictions on shopping and dining, Covid has brought more people back to cooking from scratch. While dining with others is not quite possible, perhaps this is a sign of things to come. I do hope that someone went to my colleagues yard sale and got a nice, inexpensive flatware set and is now busy using it, even if just for his or her immediate family. Peter Seibert, a native Pennsylvanian, grew up in the antiques business and remains closely tied to auction houses, collectors, and dealers. Professionally, he has served as a museum director and public historian in Pennsylvania, New Mexico, Virginia, and Wyoming. He holds a Master of Arts in American Studies from Penn State and has authored two books and numerous articles on decorative arts, interior design, and history.