Recently, when Gerry and I were going to meet a distant relative, our cousin told us, “You’ll like him. He’s the salt of the earth.”

That sounded like a good compliment, but not a usual description. Usually, a person would describe someone as shy, outgoing, reserved, friendly, talkative, loud, quiet, etc. “Salt of the earth” paints a different kind of picture. The unusual description of the new relative motivated me to research salt to see why someone might be described as “the salt of the earth.”

First of all, I learned that we couldn’t live without salt. It’s an essential ingredient for our body to function properly. Research shows that we need a small amount, 500 mg a day.

We need salt to maintain a proper balance of water and minerals in our bodies, to conduct nerve impulses, to contract and relax muscles. But, information cautions us to not overload with salt! Too much can cause health problems. Salt, like everything in life, needs a good balance.

Besides being vital for bodily functions, salt is used in making many products — leather, paper, plastics, pharmaceuticals, clothing, rubber, cosmetics, on and on, and it’s also something New Englanders need for winter safety — salt for the roads and to de-ice our walkways.

Salt is very common. Seventy percent of our world is covered with salt water. Salt is on dining tables at home and in restaurants to enhance the flavor of our food. It also can act as a preservative to keep food from spoiling.

It can be healing when applied to wounds. I remember my mother having me gargle with salt water when I had a sore throat. Gerry said salt water dried up his poison ivy when he went to the beach. The Romans recognized its value and used it as money to pay workers at a time when salt was not readily available.

Have you heard someone say, “He’s worth his salt?” It means he’s a good worker, worth the salary he’s paid.

Yes, salt is very valuable, but we don’t place it in a valuable category. Gold we do place in a valuable category, but think about it — we could live without gold, but we couldn’t live without salt. We must not underestimate and take for granted the value of the common, everyday things in our lives that would be hard to live without.

All of this information made me think more deeply about the value of salt and how a person described using that term would be someone worthy of high esteem, someone to be valued.

The term “salt of the earth” first appeared in the Bible. Jesus used it to describe his apostles, and we all know what good people they were. And, they were ordinary people, fishermen and laborers.

A “salt of the earth” person is someone who is good and honest; a person who treats others with kindness, respect, and patience; a person who cares for others; and who does good deeds without the expectation of something in return.

Just as salt adds flavor to food, salt of the earth people add good flavor wherever they go, and they draw out the good flavor of the people they are interacting with. Their words and actions are flavored with salt. A salt of the earth person makes the world “taste” better.

We are all like salt shakers. Salt in its shaker does no good. We have to shake it out to bring out the best flavors we can everywhere we go. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the world were populated with people who are the salt of the earth?

I like that description for a person who fits it. We have friends who could be described that way and I think I’ll start using that term.

Warmth and welcoming hospitality greeted us when we met our new relative. We felt his salt of the earth personality right away. We had a wonderful visit, and we hope it was the first of many. Our cousin was right — we do like him.

Carole Gariepy lives in Phillipston.

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