Let's get salty

It is said of Boswell, the famous biographer of Dr. Samuel Johnson, that he often referred to a special day in his childhood when his father took him fishing. The day was fixed in his adult mind, and he often reflected upon many of the things his father had taught him in the course of their fishing experience together.

After having heard of that particular excursion so often, it occurred to someone much later to check the journal that Boswell’s father kept and determine what had been said about the fishing trip from the parental perspective. Turning to that date, the reader found only one sentence entered: “Gone fishing today with my son; a day wasted.”

Wow, did he get it wrong. As parents, it is often the daily interaction with our children that will cast a lifetime of influence.

What kind of influence are you having? You may have no idea who you are influencing. In many ways, we are a lot like salt. The Bible in Matthew 5:13 actually said, “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again?”

Salt had great value to the Romans and was prized for both its flavor and purity. They used to pay their soldiers with chunks of salt. It was that prized by the people for its value. People would work diligently to protect their salt from dirt and other impurities, mindful that salt had very little value once it had lost its purity.

Salt influences everything it contacts. Whether on french fries or popcorn at the movies, salt influences everything it touches. We’ve been called “the salt of the earth,” and like physical salt, our influence can be profound. And our influence is seen the most with those to whom we are closest, like our children.

One day a strange dog came to a preacher’s house, and his three sons soon became quite fond of it. It so happened that there were three white hairs in the animal’s tail. One day an advertisement was seen in the newspaper about a lost dog which fit that description perfectly.

In the presence of my three boys, the minister said, we carefully separated the three white hairs and removed them. The real owner discovered where the straying canine had found a home and came to claim him. The dog showed every sign of recognition, so the man was ready to take him away. Quickly the minister spoke up, saying, Didn’t you say the dog would be known by three white hairs in its tail?

The owner, unable to find the identifying feature, was forced to leave. The minister said later, we kept the dog, but I lost my three boys. His sons no longer had confidence in what their father professed. He hadn’t practiced what he preached.

Sometimes the influence comes from our children. While visiting Savannah, my wife, Georgia, and I went to the historic Bonaventure Cemetery with its massive oak trees covered with hanging moss. After some searching we discovered its most famous monument, a life-sized replica of a sweet 10-year-old girl. Beside the statue was a little white stone on which the parents had chiseled these words: “A child of whom her playmates said, ‘It was easier to be good when she was with us.’”

So, what kind of influence are you having on those closest to you?