I just had one of my best friends from Park City, Utah, visit. Accompanying him were three others from Park City. They came to ride bikes and check out Dolores, where I live, and Durango, where my good friend and I attended Fort Lewis College together. It amazes me that even though, my friend and I have spent most of the last decade apart, we don’t miss a beat when we are together. I am also reminded that my life is so very different from most people in the United States. I live on thirty five undeveloped acres, in a house that most people wouldn’t eve classify as livable. My friends, could care less about nice cars or clothes. We are broken off from most of Americas culture. But yet, we can still drink beer, laugh and enjoy those that are so different from us.

Park City

Park City was an extremely wealthy town when I grew up in Salt Lake City in the 90s. With the tech boom that they have experienced over the last 10 years, it has become even wealthier. Needless to say, culturally, even though my visitors are very similar to me, politically, demographically, and, some of them at least, financially, there is definitely a divide between me and them.

It’s a bit hard to explain. We are all the same age, yet all of them are married and have children. Their wives are all stay-at-home moms. When my wife was talking about the patriarchy one of them winced and another admitted that “they didn’t know what that was” until my wife told them. They all live in large expensive houses, have nice cars, and are mid to high level managers at tech or outdoor companies (one sold real estate).

Dolores

I couldn’t live in a world more different then theirs. Most of my friends, despite being in the same age bracket, are just getting married. Only one of my friends has a child – who is only four months old. A couple of my friends own houses, but most of them are fixer-uppers and the rest rent. I live in a barn. No one drives a nice car.

And yet, all of these gentleman I would consider friends. They are stand up people, we enjoy the same outdoor activities, we are interested in the same things. Politically, we align. We all work 9 to 5 and enjoy playing outside when we have time off. We live such different lives, but manage to be the same, somehow.

The Cultural Divide

I don’t bring these differences up to stand on a high horse. Instead, I bring them up as a personal, relatable look into the many cultural divides that our country and world endures and, I’d argue, thrives on. It has always been amazing to me that so many people with so many different values and lives manage to live in the same country, cohesively.

And yet, the divide above describes one of the smallest separations that our country endures. Many divides are far greater. The separation between rich and poor, for example. One, the rich, live a lives so cartoonish, you would have to live it to believe it. They can do pretty much whatever they want. They can get away with sexual assault regularly for decades(examples: 1, 2, 3, 4) for example. The other, the poor, knows nothing but limitation. Each day is a bit harder than the last. Everyday they are more likely to experience something that will do irreparable harm to their lives and their future.

But the system moves on. I, for one, would like to see the divide between rich a poor shrink, so that bad days don’t turn into bad lives for the poor. Even if that means that a smart businessman looses some of their luxuries that they may have arguably earned. That is not the point of this story though, the point is that, in a world with so many different people, cultures, dreams I write this rambling note optimistically. There are many differences in the world. And yet, the world keeps turning, and more and more people move out of poverty, have access to health care and attend school. We somehow do all of this, with so much diversity. It is a wonder to behold that we manage to, somewhat peacefully, move the world forward, inch by inch, child by child, while living our very diverse lives.