One way that humans categorize someone on first meeting is to ask what they do for a living. I’m not sure that’s the best way to get to know people but it’s handy, and can sometimes open the door to a wider view. If I met an astronaut, I’d have a lot of questions about their job, but they’d need to dumb down some answers about technical aspects.
Some people don’t care to be questioned, and have innovative ways of avoiding that. A writer who prefers to sleep, or work, on the plane, answers that he’s a television evangelist. Apparently, that’s pretty effective in shutting down conversation.
A Sandhill resident recently traveled to Chicago for a funeral and at the after gathering, found himself in the midst of a group with many queries for a stranger. “Oh, you’re a rancher. You have cows? How many? How much land do you have? His place is pretty small in comparison to many, but those aren’t questions you ask a rancher. My dad always replied, “How much money do you have? That’s what you just asked me.” Our neighbor managed to dodge politely, although not quite as creatively as one old rancher in the Sandhills who said he had enough cows to eat his grass. When they asked how much land, he’d reply it was enough to feed his cows.
When this fellow mentioned he’s also a trucker, they asked what he hauled. Cattle, and hay in big round bales. “What’s a round bale? Where do you haul the cattle? He gave up on trying to explain round bales but said he sometimes hauls cattle to a livestock barn. “What’s a livestock barn?” That’s about when he said “Let’s talk about you, what do you do?”
These people are just trying to be friendly but, in reality, they’re showing how small their worlds are. Most of us out here watch television and read enough news to know about crime and homelessness in the city. About protests and politics, wars, and weather across the nation. We know that what affects one segment of society affects us all, but the urban population seldom bothers to ask about matters that concern folks out here in flyover country, or realizes that those issues are universal. Maybe that’s what happens when you’re crowded elbow to elbow with your fellow man. Somehow, we need to find ways to educate one another about our different lifestyles and how intertwined we all are.
“So, you live in a rural area?” the Chicago guy asked.
“Well, let me tell you about rural. Where I live it’s well over a hundred miles in any direction to get to a Walmart.”
“Wow. You really are rural.”
Probably, if I was walking down the street in Denver, stepping over needles, feces, and people in tents and sleeping bags, I’d say wow too. But I know these problems are creeping ever closer to my little world, and I hope my next words would be “What solutions are there for this, and shouldn’t we all be a part of that?”
Maybe a better query for strangers would be, “Where are you from?” Followed by, What’s the best thing about living there? What’s the biggest problem in your area?” That would get us to the nitty gritty in a hurry, and evolve into deeper understanding for all of us who share this planet.
Meet me here next week and meanwhile, do your best. Somebody might like it.