Favorite Flavors

As some of you may know, the Kansas FFA state officers recently had the privilege of attending the International Leadership Seminar for State Officers (or ILSSO) in South Africa along with 75 other state officers and staff from across the nation. The experience was incredible, and any of us would be happy to share our stories from this trip with you, but for the sake of space I will share just one minor piece in this post.

One of my favorite things to do regardless of where I travel is to sample the cuisine. Throughout my life, I have been spoiled by my mother’s cooking, and I have come to know my favorite flavors in certain dishes. I’ll admit I’m preferential, but that wasn’t going to stop me from being adventurous in my tastes. While in South Africa, I had the opportunity to try bobotie (a sort of sweet sausage in a cooked egg custard), abalone (a snail-like creature), chakalaka (imagine a sweet yet spicy coleslaw), and a variety of other dishes I could hardly pronounce. My pallet was certainly educated, but I learned to prefer certain dishes over others.

Abalone – a member of the mollusk family. Considered a delicacy for many, but not for me!

Chakalaka is the orange dish in the upper right part of the plate consisting of chopped carrots, peppers, ginger, and curry.

Various types of bobotie were served to us throughout the trip. (Facing towards me, distant to my friend Liberty across the table), the yellow circular patty towards the front was a salmon bobotie, and the darker beef sausage-like boboties are nearer to the bowl.

However, I realized that just because I didn’t like a certain dish didn’t mean that made it bad. Some of my friends really enjoyed the snaily abalone, whereas I could take it or leave it. On the other hand, one of my favorite foods was chakalaka, but I was one of just a few people at my table who could get over the mild spice.

Similarly, we must learn to respect others’ tastes and preferences even if they do not match our own–different does not equal wrong. We can’t always pick and choose who we interact daily like items on a menu. How true is the old adage “variety is the spice of life”. Each of us brings a different dish -or a different talent- to the table, and when enjoyed together, they create a masterpiece.

Good food is best shared in the company of good friends.