here's the book i was telling you about--isn't it pretty? i think i would be one of the people mark was referring to who, once having purchased a block, would be afraid to use it. i'd likely want to showcase it as a piece of art. my first encounters with salt, however, were about as sophisticated as watching grandpa sprinkle it for at least 3 minutes, forming a small everest, atop his meat and potatoes...and my backyard chore of using it to kill slugs in the garden. i graduated to the oh-so-hip level of switching the salt and sugar in restaurants for april fool's day (if you ended up with saline coffee, i apologize, it may have been my fault!). thinking as an adult about salt and how a little goes a long way, depending on the moisture of the food involved, i thought about seasoning and grace and what kind of person i want to be. Jesus knew about the properties of salt; to think that we can flavor, clean, and preserve with our lives...and i've uncovered a few things entering my fortieth year of life. 1) we are in charge of our own happiness. i know it sounds simple, but it's true. no one else, not your boss or your spouse or your kids and friends, but YOU. we don't really get to decide what happens to us, but i am more and more convinced of our control over what shapes us; how we think in response to life. salt, as bitterman was saying--like diamonds--is the result of huge pressure over great amounts of time. and it's mined, hacked at really, in huge chunks before it's refined into lovely slabs such as these. it goes through testing to see what grade or quality it is--will it be for serving on, warming only or being heated to high temperatures for searing meats? 2) shake it off--like coaches often tell athletes, what looks like a mess isn't always so bad. salt has to be cleaned, but it has a surprisingly long life as a chemical compound. his book has tips for what to do when it appears to be past its prime, which i love for the resourcefulness of it all...don't just throw it out, be creative! 3) joy is infectious (so is negativity) don't be afraid to surround yourself with people you like who you want to be like! this is not to say that we don't need to stretch ourselves or share with differently-minded people...on the contrary, choosing well who you spend the most time with can't help but season every interaction you have from the inside out, on the community, acquaintance or stranger level. got salt?
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