The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Standing in a pavilion overlooking a rugged coastline last week, the guy we asked to take a photo of three generations of family did so enthusiastically. “Living here you get to be a pretty good photographer,” he said of the Big Island. We here in CB know the experience.
In further conversation he hypothesized that Colorado and Hawaii always end up near the top of the happiness lists that litter the internet and magazines. He said people from those two places are blessed with beauty, relationship, an active lifestyle with work-life balance and raw nature. True.
And then I went to the Googles when writing this — and while Hawaii tops most recent happiness lists, Colorado is actually in the bottom 10. What?! I raise an eyebrow when the list has Nebraska at number three and Colorado in the 40s. But upon reflection, that’s okay.
“Ranked as the 10th-least-happiest state in the US, Colorado was also the second-lowest state in the study’s community-and-environment rank, which looked at factors like safety, divorce rate, volunteer rate, weather and leisure time,” the internet states. “But the state is also ranked as having the third-highest rate of adequate sleep and the second-highest sports participation in the country.” Sweet!
I know no shortage of people in Crested Butte who would like the Tourism and Prosperity Partnership (TAPP) to be pushing that message for the valley.
Don’t count on it.
“Other reports have placed Colorado higher in the past, but recent analyses have shown a decline in overall happiness,” the interwebs noted.
So, there are a lot of different lists, and maybe being a bottom 10 state on some is okay. At least we’re not Louisiana or West Virginia which are rock bottom on almost every list. Hey, I guess we can keep some of our secrets, secret.
So as Diane and I headed back from the green palm fronds to the golden aspens after a week of family including a couple of grandbabies, I can second the volunteer photographer’s observations. People from Colorado – maybe not those in downtown Craig or Yuma or people stuck in I-70 traffic five days a week, but those from the places high in the Rocky Mountains like us – and people from the islands, have solid reasons to be pretty darn happy. Heck, our first night back brought with it bugling elk, coyotes howling and geese honking. It was an audio nature documentary outside the bedroom window.
Of course my blood pressure increased when I covered a meeting Monday and the never-ending conversation about transferring the ownership of the CB Arts Center from the town to a non-profit board continued (more on that next week)…but a Tuesday walk in the autumn glow brought it down again.
So, don’t take our good fortune for granted. The golds exploded and held longer than anticipated and now is when we begin the anticipation of another winter ski season. Be where you are. Breathe it in, let the autumn love flow and embrace the blessings that surround us here.
And if you’re tired of it all…I hear Nebraska is fantastic!
—Mark Reaman
