Keeping An Open Mind

I grew up in a stereotypical small-town U.S.A. community, and I couldn't wait for the day when I could pack my belongings and move to the big city. To give you context on how small this community is, the public school was a K-12 school surrounded by farmland from every direction except north of the school, where Main Street ran through the heart of town. There was a single railroad crossing that split the north and south end of town as well as a post office, town hall and a gas station along highway 50. In that regard, the town wasn't completely secluded from the rest of society. Not like other communities that are in the same county at least. The town had less than 1,000 people residing in it, however, and if you stayed long enough you got to know almost all of your neighbors. The school was the same way. Whether you were in the same grade or not, if you stayed long enough you knew everyone in every grade, whether you wanted to know them or not. Just like small town U.S.A., it was a town or area that graduating students either left behind them for good or stayed after high school and never left. In hindsight staying near your roots isn't a bad thing. The chances are good that family and close friends stayed as well, so the support system couldn't be closer to you. I, however, was excited to go somewhere new. I wanted to experience the world far enough away from home to find myself and learn who I am when I'm out of my comfort zone.

I went from a town of less than 1,000 people to Denver, a city with over one million people in the metro area (now it's closer to three million). Moving to the city was not a culture shock to me. I regularly spent summers in Phoenix as a kid and became accustomed to what city life could be like. What shocked me most was the cultural diversity around me. I remember taking a walk on the 16th Street Mall during my first week in the city and coming across people of Asian descent, Latino descent and many other cultures in the span of a few blocks! I didn't know Denver had such a culturally diverse population. I wouldn't have expected that at the time because I came from a small town where almost everyone looked the same and thought similarly, or in simpler terms, small town with small, minded people. I'm not saying that to diss the small-town lifestyle. In reality that's the way most small towns in America are. The people don't need a plethora of options to choose from when it comes to buying produce or where to worship on Sunday's. They're hardworking people who appreciate the simple things in life, and I say that with the highest regard. I have great appreciation for the simplistic way of life.

After five years of living in Denver, I was starting to lose the passion I once had for living in a big city. The truth is that big cities have too many options at our disposal. Commuting around big cities can be a nightmare as well. It can take 30 minutes to drive five miles because of traffic or because you get stopped at every red light on the street. Some cities public transit systems aren't efficient either, making those commutes nightmares for people who don't drive or don't want to drive to work every day. It was routine for me to have to leave the house at least an hour early for school or work if I didn't want to be late. Living in big cities is typically more expensive than living in a smaller community too. At first, that wasn't an issue for me. Once I moved into my own space and was responsible for all of the bills, I realized my dad had a point about the cost differences between big city and small town. As time went on, the hustle and bustle were becoming a daily grind for me. It didn't matter how many different restaurants and entertainment venues were around me to keep me interested. And escaping to the mountains whenever possible wasn't cutting it anymore. City life was becoming to0 much for me to keep up with and enjoy.

In August of 2022, I took a few days to visit the Grand Junction, Colorado area so I could decide if I wanted to take a job transfer there. Grand Junction itself is a city in the traditional sense. Over 160,000 live in the metro area, making it the biggest city in Colorado's western slope. That's not a small city by any means but compared to the three million plus people around Denver, it might as well be a town of 1,000 people. As far as the surrounding area went, it was exactly what I was looking for in a new environment. It was somewhere I was hardly familiar with, having only gone through the area once when I was a little kid. Aside from a couple college friends, I didn't have any connections nearby either. Best of all, the cost of living at the time was a lot more affordable compared to the rest of the state. It wasn't that much better but at least it felt fair in value. There is also a plethora of outdoor activities like hiking, biking and paddleboarding easily accessible in the metro area or just a few hours away in any direction. The Grand Mesa, the world's highest flat-top mesa at 11,200 feet sits outside of Palisade to the east. The Colorado National Monument sits just west of Fruita. Moab, Utah is only a two-hour drive from Grand Junction as well. If you're an outdoorsman, this is a great area to consider moving to for that reason alone. However, the thing that sold me on the area most of all was something I realized I took for granted growing up in a small town: it was quiet.

I became so accustomed to constant background noise while living in Denver that I forgot what it felt like for things to be still around me. The nights were peaceful. And I could see the stars on clear nights! Oh, how I missed that. To look at the sky and see the stars glitter the sky and the moon shining brightly was a sight for sore eyes. There weren't city lights and pollution blocking the pathways here. The area takes pride in local business as well, which was something I wished my hometown took more seriously growing up. The surrounding communities host festivals and street markets during the warm summer months where local business owners showcase their products to local residents and tourists from all around the country. Wine country was the biggest money maker agriculturally. The east end of the metro area, Palisade and Orchard Mesa specifically, was booming with vineyards, distilleries and farm stands. Fruita is famous for the legend Mike the headless chicken, who has an annual festival every May or June. And Grand Junction is home to Colorado Mesa University, which brings in thousands of young minds to the area every fall and spring. The area was one that felt self-reliant on what it did best to succeed and bring people in, and it was refreshing to see small communities trying to be appealing to visit and live in.

Ironically, I would end up moving to Palisade, a town of less than 3,000 people when it was all said and done. I never thought I would go back to the small-town life again, but Palisade was the quiet community that I needed. I found a new appreciation for living in quiet, rural communities again after escaping the city life. While I moved back to the big city late last year by choice, my experience in Palisade has kept my mind open to the idea of going back to the solitude of a quiet small town in the future. I think when we're young and naive, it's easy to picture where we think we'll be in life so far ahead into the future that we don't see things going another way. It's easy to be close minded to other options because they don't feel like things that are in our best interest. You could grow up in a small town and hate it only to find yourself going back after a few years away. The same can be said for living in the city your whole life. Maybe it comes down to landing a job in a career field you never pictured yourself in where you make your honest living and stick to it until the day you retire. It's important to keep an open mind to the possibilities around you, even if they don't align with your perceived interests. You never know what doors you'll open by keeping an open mind to the world around you.