Everyday People

There is a blue one who can’t accept the green one for living with a fat one tryin’ to be a skinny one, different strokes for different folks… These are the lyrics from the song Everyday People by Sly and the Family Stone.

When you travel around this melting pot called the United States, you discover some very interesting things. In different parts of the country there are different rituals and norms. The way people talk has different inflections, cadence and uses for the same words. City dwellers think they are friendlier than rural dwellers. Rural dwellers think they are friendlier than urban ones. Each one thinks that the details of their living condition, or culture, possesses some sort of superiority over the other.

Winter in Florida does not require the same type of clothing that winter in Minnesota does, but it does still force those who live in either place to make adjustments due to the climate. Farmers in Michigan may grow apple trees and cherry trees while farmers in the south grow peach trees and orange trees. Different location, same task, to grow fruit to be harvested for consumption. A mechanic who works on engines for lawnmowers, motorcycles, cars or airplanes all begin with learning what makes an internal combustion engine work. Focusing on what is different only keeps us from capitalizing on the overwhelming number of things that we have in common.

When we amplify culture, we run the risk of diminishing civility. A good habit to teach people is for them to pay attention to the unique things about the person you are engaging with in order to establish a place of common ground. This is called active listening. It is a process that can help you figure a way to resolve your common concern even though you may be looking at it from a different perspective. Civility will make us be more aware of the unique things about one another, adding value to the person and the circumstance.

When culture becomes central to all interactions, it corrupts. Culture should not be greater than the guiding principles, beliefs and integrity that we use to operate. Whether Eastern or Western, Northern or Southern, Liberal or Conservative, Republican or Democrat we must strive to make the cultures of each of these areas be a part of the life we live rather than be the life we live.

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