This is Roald Tweet on Rock Island.
It's a tired cliché to say that life is like a road, full of bends, hills, forks and potholes. Or that we are like ships on tempest-tossed seas, sailing toward safe harbors. Or that life, as Shakespeare says, is like a stage.
Rock Islanders know better than this; our large Swedish population who arrived here in the 1860’s and 70’s, many to work for John Deere, brought with them from Sweden the perfect metaphor for life: the smorgasbord. Learning to navigate that fifty-foot table of appetizers, salads, casseroles, meats, fishes, and deserts may be why of all the citizens in this valley, our Swedish-Americans are among the most upstanding and successful.
For instance, a common mistake in both life and smorgasbord is to take too much too soon, leaving too little room on your plate for the wonders to come. I know the appetizers are hard to resist, but keep in mind that radishes and celery fill a plate fast, and all those marshmallow-Jell-O salads may be colorful, but they won't stick to your ribs and take you through life.
Now that you're at the mid-point, you have to decide. Commit yourself to the meatballs and new potatoes, or to the ham, mashed potatoes and gravy, or the pork chops with dressing. Don't be a jack of all trades, taking one meatball, a small potato, a teaspoon of dressing and a bite of pork—that will leave you unsatisfied, with no room for those hobby sidelines, the noodle and rice casseroles.
As you travel down the smorgasbord of life, more good rules to make your trip richer involve the treatment of other eaters. Don't take the last radish on a plate, the last serving of pickled herring. Someone may need it more. On the other hand, if an offering has not been touched, take some. You wouldn't like people to reject what you brought.
I am closer to the end of the serving line than many of you, and have taken more than I should, and now know better. I would say to those of you just picking up a plate or in your salad twenties, SAVE ROOM FOR DESSERT.
Rock Island Lines with Roald Tweet is underwritten by Augustana College, Rock Island, Illinois.
