I fixed chicken tonight and seasoned it with a little salt and lots of garlic powder. My husband liked it. Normally he is not a big fan of chicken, so the fact that he liked this was confirmation that I'm on the right track about getting food to taste good to him.

All the thinking about seasoning has me thinking and researching salt - specifically is there any difference (besides hype) between regular salt and sea salt. I've learned several things.

1. Both regular salt and sea salt are 98 - 99 % sodium chloride - so the differences are small at best.

2. Regular salt has non-caking agents added, and may have iodine added as well.

3. Some sources of regular salt are deposits left long ago by the sea, so they are indistinguishable from sea salt.

4. Some salts labeled "sea salt" comes from evaporated sea water, but are so highly processed that they are indistinguishable from regular salt.

5. Sea salt that is not highly processed is light gray in color and has other minerals from the sea water.

Number 5 is the one that confuses me. Websites that promote sea salt are very enthusiastic about the perfect balance of minerals found in sea water. However other credible websites warn us to beware of eating certain types of fish because of high levels of mercury and dangerous chemicals polluting sea water.

So, if I buy unprocessed sea salt, how much mercury am I ingesting?

For the time being I am going to stick with iodized salt that doesn't cake up in humid Texas summers.

I don't underestimate the challenge of preparing tasty food for my husband with reduced salt. Jesus, understood the importance of seasoning when he drew an analogy between seasoning food with salt and the believer's role in the world.

He said, "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:13-16