salt of the earth

ok, so this evening i gave a talk at a singles group sponsored by the local baptist association in the county where i work.....i say singles with a grain of salt....as there was nobody in the room below the age of 65....and yet they were all without partners.......15 women....2 men......all wanting to hear a message about eating better.....the event was a potluck.....and the fare ranged from a jar of mini-gherkins...to spinach dip and triscuits.....to meatballs in sauce...to several fruit trays....and the comments were to be expected.....was i going to watch what each person selected.....i said no...but i could not help but notice the woman directly in front of me with a plate of pie and skittles.......no fruits, vegetables, protein...or dairy......just pie and little colored candies......but i digress........i did not come to this event alone.......no....for one time only i was accompanied by my shadow.........my middle child required to shadow some working adult for 14 hours over 2 days.......and we were so very vague....this was not a crowd who would quite appreciate the ins and outs of my middle child's post-high school plans......and so when asked what he planned to do after danville high...the answer was 'i don't know what i want to study'.....which is true.......the group must have asked me 6 times to go through the 'line' first...but i never eat before speaking in public...and demured emphatically.......it was all i could do to not take complete control of this group......who were missing 'brother' whatever..the leader of this band of baptists........off doing a revival...they were clearly at a loss as to how to proceed without a guiding hand.......and so i just leaped in when there was a lull......and presented my tried and true points......like any preacher worth his salt........with an emphasis on eating breakfast, at least 5 fistfuls of fruits/vegetables a day.....an walking at least 10,000 steps a day....all very positive can-do messages....nothing negative.........and when i was through...i filled a small bowl with the remaining pickles...a bit of spinach dip and triscuits....and we were on our way home to fix a real supper.......so what was the lesson?.........i will admit to pandering to my audience with a comment about the reality of health-wielding antioxidant fruits/vegetables being highly colored and desirable.....that it was no accident but a carefully scripted plan wrought by a benevolent maker.......the most laughs of the evening came when i explained that though my child was shadowing i had no illusions about him choosing a nutrition sort of life......ha!....nutrition is the mainstay of the landgrant colleges....not the ivy league......nutrition is salt of the earth.....make no mistake.....but nutrition is just the path i made do with.........i am like the legions of american parents who wish better for their offspring...........