April 7, 2024 • 24 mins
Finding Community Amidst Apocalypse and Change
In this episode titled 'Vibing the Apocalypse,' the host reflects on community life and cohesion in the challenging times of what they humorously term an ongoing 'apocalypse', marking it as day 1,484. The narration starts with a casual weather update, transitioning into a personal anecdote about performing at a pop-up comedy event by 'Don't Tell Comedy' at a witchy yoga studio. The host then delves into the concept of community, particularly in the context of current political and societal instability, including the upcoming U.S. election. Reflecting on these tensions, the host shares a newfound appreciation for their local community in Daybreak, Utah, a unique and intentionally designed neighborhood built on a former testing site. The host compares Daybreak's communal and inclusive environment to their upbringing in a Mormon polygamous compound in Wyoming, emphasizing the contrast between the two experiences. The episode goes on to discuss Daybreak's achievements, diversity, and the importance of having welcoming, connected, and generous communities. It concludes with an invitation to an upcoming comedy event and a call to cherish and build robust, loving local communities amidst broader societal turmoil.
#ApocalypseVibes #CommunityEngagement #DaybreakUtah #CommunityValues #DiverseImmunity #ConnectionOpportunities #GenerousCommunity #HumanCommunity
00:00 Welcome to Vibing the Apocalypse 00:25 A Glimpse into Utah's Weather and Community Spirit 00:55 The Unique Experience of Don't Tell Comedy 01:53 Reflecting on Community in Apocalyptic Times 02:55 Discovering Daybreak: A Community Built on a Testing Site 05:57 From a Polygamous Compound to Daybreak: A Personal Journey 08:43 Daybreak's Diverse and Engaged Community 13:49 The Importance of Community Engagement and Values 21:29 Closing Thoughts: The Power of Community in Challenging Times 23:27 Upcoming Comedy Church Event Announcement
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Title: "Embracing Community in the Midst of Apocalyptic Times"
In a world plagued by uncertainty and chaos, finding solace in community has never been more paramount. As echoed in the podcast "Vibing the Apocalypse," the narrator shares a poignant reflection on the importance of fostering a strong and inclusive community, even in the face of global upheaval.
Reflecting on the unique community of Daybreak in Utah, the narrator highlights the intentional design and values that have shaped this thriving neighborhood. From diverse immunity to opportunities for connection and a culture of generous giving, Daybreak embodies the essence of a resilient and compassionate community.
Amidst divisive political landscapes and turbulent times, the narrator advocates for a paradigm shift towards embracing our shared humanity and recognizing the intrinsic value of every individual within our communities. By cultivating a culture of inclusivity, empathy, and collaboration, we pave the way for a brighter future amidst the challenges of the present.
As we navigate through these trying times, let us heed the call to prioritize community building, foster meaningful connections, and embrace the diversity that enriches the tapestry of our shared human experience. Together, we can weather the storms of the apocalypse and emerge stronger, united by the bonds of community and a collective vision for a better tomorrow.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:12):
Alright, welcome, heathens,to Vibing the Apocalypse.
It is day 1, 484 of the apocalypse.
Uh, I hope you're doing well.
Uh, it's April now here in Utah,which means that, uh, we only have
about six or seven more snowstorms,uh, until we have summer in July.
(00:35):
So, looking forward to that very much.
Uh, today's a little bit,uh, a little overcast.
A little, a little, not snowy, butit sort of like threatens snow.
Like every once in a while, I'llget a little, uh, a little wisp.
And my friends up in Idaho, uh,they got snowed on yesterday.
So, stay safe, Idahoans.
I had a, uh, I had a show last night.
(00:59):
I did something called Don't Tell Comedy.
Don't Tell Comedy is a little popup comedy venue where they find
cool little locations throughout thevalley, and they'll do a surprise
lineup in a surprise location.
So you buy tickets for a day,and then you kind of find out
day of where the venue is.
And who the lineup is going to be.
(01:21):
And, uh, I was on the show.
It was at witchy yogastudio, no witchy yoga girl.
That was the name of the place.
Witchy yoga girl.
Uh, I think over in Sandyand it was pretty witchy.
There were crystalseverywhere, which were rad.
I love crystals and a couple, about38 people came out and, uh, we did a
little bit of comedy for them and itwas really fun and it made me really.
(01:45):
Uh, appreciative of the, thecommunity that I live in and
the people that are in it.
And I've been thinking a lot about Ithink been thinking a lot about community
in the context of the apocalypsebecause, uh, As the world becomes more
and more unstable at the top, I'm justthinking about like the, when I think
(02:10):
about the, the, the U S election that'scoming up in, uh, in this year, uh,
it's going to be just awful, right?
There's no, everything about itis going to, is going to royally
suck no matter how it goes.
And what that's sort of done tome is it's made me feel like that
(02:30):
That part of the world is maybe alittle less relevant in my life.
And what maybe is more relevantin my life is the immediate
community that I'm surrounded by.
And I've just felt when I, when I thoughtabout that last night, as I was driving
home from this comedy show, I justfelt an overwhelming sense of gratitude
for the community that I live in.
(02:52):
I live in a reallyawesome community in Utah.
It's called Daybreak and Daybreak is areally cool community because it's, it's.
Very intentional.
Like Daybreak wasn't supposed to be here.
In fact, uh, the land that we're on,I learned this just last night, the
land that we're on that Daybreak isbuilt on, it's way out kind of West
(03:13):
in, uh, kind of West of Salt LakeValley over by the Kennecott mine.
So there's a, some smaller mountainsopposite the Wasatch front, and that's
sort of where Daybreak is, which nowthat I think about it is a little
funny that Daybreak is in the West.
Because Daybreak feels more like a,that feels more like an East name
like, so I don't know why, I don'tknow why they called it Daybreak.
(03:33):
Maybe because we get the sunlightfrom the day as it breaks
over the Wasatch Mountains.
Maybe that's where it came from.
Anyway, uh, Daybreak isa really cool community.
And when it was, uh, but, butbefore it was built out here,
this was like a testing site.
So the dirt that we are on, likethe land that we were, we are on,
they would use for, uh, for testing.
(03:54):
And I don't know exactly what that means.
I don't know if that was like, Idoubt that was nuclear testing.
Maybe it was like smaller bomb testing,or maybe it was chemical testing.
I don't know.
But the comment that I read in ourlittle, uh, I was in like our little,
uh, we have like a little Facebookgroup with, uh, about 11, 000 members.
And, And, uh, kind of in and aroundDaybreak and someone was talking about
(04:15):
how they wanted to plant a garden andthey were asking if the, if the, if
the garden food would be impacted bythe testing that had been done here.
And somebody got on thereand said, yeah, no worries.
There's actually 50 feet offill dirt between, uh, the
testing site and, and Daybreak.
So they piled on 50 feet of dirt over,uh, over the old dirt that was here.
(04:39):
Before they built the, this communityand if that's not an apocalyptic
community, I don't know what itis because we were literally, this
community is literally built on atesting site, which is wild to me.
And how did we do it?
Well, we just piled a bunch of dirt on it.
And then we intentionally created thisreally beautiful neighborhood and Daybreak
(05:02):
is such a, if you haven't ever been outhere, you should, you should come check
it out because it is such a cool location.
And they, they've just reallyintentionally built, there are a
bunch of neighborhoods, kind of subneighborhoods in the, in Daybreak that
all have their own unique kind of flavor.
Like I'm in a place where there area bunch of townhomes, so it feels
a little, a little more, you know.
Urban feels a little more, uh,you know, more city like I'm
(05:26):
right next to the track station.
There's a library.
There's going to be a big old, uh,baseball stadium here pretty soon.
And so there's kind of that vibe.
And then in other parts, there'smore of like a rambler vibe or
like a single family home vibe.
There's an island that you canwalk around, uh, in the middle
of this big man made lake.
And in the summer you can likerent paddle boards and, uh, and
(05:47):
go out on the lake and everythingabout it is, uh, Really beautiful.
I remember the first timethat I came, uh, to Daybreak.
It was such a contrastfrom where I grew up.
Uh, as many of you know, I grew up on aMormon polygamous compound in Wyoming.
And what that looked like,my dad thought that was Zion.
(06:08):
So my dad was trying to build Zionor the kingdom of God in Wyoming.
And what that actually lookedlike was like, You know, three
or four trailers on a hill on aranch in the desert of Wyoming.
So, uh, lots of dirt, uh, lots of corrals.
(06:28):
There was an old ramshackle barnthat was like falling apart.
Uh, there was like tons ofmanure in all of these barns.
Like, there were like, probablylike a football field worth of
corrals with, with cows in them.
And there was just tons of shit.
So it would like, and that wouldlike blow up the hill, uh, and
we'd get, so we'd get like nice,real, uh, nice, like shit storms.
(06:52):
Uh, anyway, so it wasn't like supercomfortable, uh, the trailers that we
were in were, were pretty run down,they would leak, uh, they would grow
mold inside we didn't have like, uh,air conditioning, we had swamp coolers,
which were just like big giant, biggiant machines that you'd soak like water
in these like really gross, uh, Likefabric, all really old gross fabrics
(07:16):
that were sort of on these cages and thenthere was a fan that would blow in it.
And that's how we wouldkeep our house cool.
And also it would smell like,it would smell like a swamp.
And so when I first, when I first came toDaybreak probably five or six years ago, I
was visiting some friends here and I drovein as I drive, drove into the community.
(07:37):
I was just.
It was, it was magical because somuch of Utah is so, has so much of a
monoculture in, in both religion andculture and also in the way that we build.
So a lot of Utah communities, a lotof Utah neighborhoods look the same.
They're very, very cookie cutter.
And when I drove into Daybreak, likeall of the architecture was unique.
(08:00):
All of the houses were different from eachother, but they all had a similar theme.
And, uh, and the, the, the commonspaces or a lot of common spaces,
which I love about Daybreak because itagain is a very intentional community.
It's sort of designed to get peopleout of their houses and interacting
with each other in, in these commonspaces, like these really great parks
(08:21):
and these miles and miles of trails.
And so I'm looking around at thisplace and I'm like, Oh, my God.
This is Zion.
Like, this is what we were, this isbasically what we were trying to create
is, uh, a community that was beautiful,that was, uh, you know, connected where
people were involved with each other.
(08:43):
And, and that's one of the thingsthat I really love about Daybreak
is it's not just the physicallocation, which is, you know, great.
It's the best city built on atesting site that I've ever been in.
But it's also full of these really, reallycool people, because as sort of a newer,
more intentional, more kind of uniqueand, and, uh, specific, uh, community it's
(09:10):
attracting a lot of really cool people.
So it's attracting a lot of peoplefrom out of state when, when
people come, it's nationally known.
So I think that Daybreak.
Uh, two or three years ago on likethe best neighborhood in the United
States, which I don't know how, Idon't know how that competition works.
I don't know who the judge is,so I don't know how cool that is.
But I mean, I have not been,I've not been named the best
(09:33):
anything in the United States.
So I imagine that's a pretty cool thing.
But so people who are out of outof state know about daybreak and
when they come, come here, a lotof them end up in, in daybreak.
And so for Utah, at leastit's pretty diverse.
There are a lot of people from, uh,different, uh, ethnicities, different
states, different hometown, like allof these different places that all
(09:55):
kind of landed here in daybreak andit's created this really, really cool.
Energy here of sort of intentionallyeveryone here, everyone
who's here wants to be here.
They care about the community.
They are engaged in the community there.
And sometimes we have the most crazyarguments, like just because we're engaged
doesn't mean that we always get along.
Like sometimes we have currently we'rein this big fight because Daybreak
(10:19):
puts on puts on these summer concerts.
This whole summer concert series whereevery week they'll bring, you know,
some, usually a cover band of someone,but it's fun and, uh, come out to, to,
to do these, like, uh, this, this parkconcert and it's been so popular that, uh,
That people come from other communities.
(10:40):
And so one of the big fights that we arehaving in the Daybreak community right
now is over some new rules about thoseconcerts, because some residents were
super pissed that, uh, so many peoplewere coming from outside of the community
and they were taking up all the spaceand they were getting all the good spots.
And then other people in thecommunity were like, let's just,
let's, let's involve everyone.
We don't want to have like, We don't haveto like check tickets or anything anyway.
(11:04):
So it was a big kerfuffle, right?
We were, we were all arguing aboutthat for a while and we probably
will be for all summer, I'll bet.
But what I love that sort of underneaththat, right underneath this conflict of,
are we going to kind of close our doors?
Are we going to be, are wegoing to be more inclusive?
Which I think is an interesting, that,that conversation of, do we close
(11:25):
our doors or do we welcome people in?
I think is a really, interesting andimportant conversation to have, uh,
during these apocalyptic times, right?
Like as the, as more people find thatthey have to go other places because
of the impact of climate changeon their, uh, home regions, right?
Utahns love, we love to complainabout Californians moving here, but I
(11:50):
guarantee you we are not done, right?
Like as the oceans continue to rise,California is going to become Uh, much
less pleasant to be in and more and morepeople are going to be flocking to, uh, to
Zion in, in Utah and, uh, anyway, so, uh,I kind of lost, I kind of lost my train
(12:12):
of thought there that where did I go?
So I was talking about people comingfrom California, inclusive or exclusive.
So, so I think that, so I, I reallybelieve that that conversation of
like, do we, do we welcome people?
Or do we close our gates?
That's an important conversation to have.
And I don't know that there'sone right answer there.
But what I loved about this conversationthat was happening in Daybreak, right,
(12:34):
is that we're having sort of thismini, this mini, uh, version of of this
broader conversation that we're havingas American, you know, as, as members
of, as people living in the United Statesabout borders and immigrants, right?
Like we're, that's a bigdeal for us right now.
Do we let them in?
Do we not let them in?
And we're having that same argument in,uh, you know, in Daybreak Utah about
(12:57):
whether or not we let the people from, Youknow, we'll let the people from Harriman
come do our, do our summer concerts.
I have some feelings about that, right?
I, I think we should, that's, I,I've, I've come down on the side
of inclusion, of welcoming, right?
More people, the better.
But what was interesting to meabout this, this debate, right?
This conversation, as it was happeningin my community, it's not so much
(13:21):
that there was an argument about that.
It's that there were, it's thatpeople in the community were.
Arguing about and for the community.
So there was a level of engagementwith the community that was
evident by these people who hadvery strong feelings sometimes.
And I loved that.
(13:42):
I love being involved in a community thatreally cares about the community, right?
A community that's intentional thatsays, you know what, this community
is important and it's important enoughfor me that I'm willing to Take my
time and my energy and advocate forthe kind of community that I want.
(14:02):
Because, uh, that's a level of engagement,uh, communal engagement that I think
is going to be really important overthe next, you know, a hundred years as
we go from more, a more national, morekind of global community to more local.
Right.
As we, as things start to sort ofsettle around here and what's cool
(14:23):
about, uh, this community of Daybreakis that there's lots of conversations
about, uh, the kinds of community thatwe want to create happening right now.
So there's tons of, uh, like manygroups within the community who are
all sort of spinning and interactingand getting to know each other.
I'm part of one kind ofentrepreneurial group of people
(14:43):
that about 1500 people who are.
All on some version of the entrepreneurjourney and, and we're all sort of in
this community as part of daybreak.
Right?
And so, I've just been reallythinking about the, the importance
of intentionally identifying.
(15:05):
Then engaging in your community,and I don't know that community
necessarily is your town.
Uh, daybreak is not a town, it'ssort of a sub HOA, but it's, it's
part of a, a, a broader city.
But I think that it's, and I think we mayneed to get better as a, as a, like, as
a national community at helping peopleidentify what those communities are,
(15:27):
because we, we need to be able to know.
What the, like, as an individual, I livein, I live in myself and then I live in
my family and then I live in my community.
And I think we need to do a betterjob at defining what that wider
community is and and how it.
(15:47):
how it interacts with the individual.
I think we've sort of maybe lost that alittle bit over the last, uh, you know,
couple hundred years of industrialization.
And we want to kind of stepmore in that direction.
And I think for me that, uh, a good, agood approach to defining communities
and defining the community that youwant to be a part of begins with
(16:12):
understanding and defining The valuesthat you want in your community.
So I wanted to share a little bit aboutthe values that I want in communities
and about one of the things that isreally and finding these values in,
uh, in Daybreak and the communitythat I live in has been really fun.
And really life affirming forme and it makes me really happy
(16:34):
to be a part of this community.
And the, the first value thatI think is really important is
that I call it diverse immunity.
I've talked about it a little biton this podcast, but it's the idea
that a community that welcomesdiverse opinions, religions,
backgrounds, ethnicities, humans.
(16:55):
Right.
Diverse and different humans.
A community that welcomes thatdifference is always going to be more
robust and more healthy, more able torespond to existential challenges, to
climate challenges, right, to stresseson the community because it will have
(17:16):
access to To more options, right?
Diversity gives you optionsas an, and as humans, right?
As sapiens, the way that we've survived.
Isn't because we're the most, you know,strong, probably not even because we're
the most intelligent it's because wehave done a really great job at creating
a cooperation that has led to a lotof different options so that we have
(17:40):
different ways of doing things, right?
So that we can go like in, in, inDaybreak's case, so that we can
come to, uh, Uh, a site of land thathad been written off that wasn't
available, that wasn't availablefor development because of testing.
Now there are, you know, thousands ofpeople, probably 14, 000 people who live
here and, uh, and those were becausewe had enough, we had a diversity of
(18:05):
options for what to do with this land.
And so having a, having adiverse community gives you
diverse immunity, right?
It gives you this immune boost.
To survive challenges.
So that's the thing that I thinkis the kind of my first value.
When I, when I'm looking for a communitythat I want to be a part of, and when
I'm trying to promote values withinmy community, the, that's number one.
(18:28):
Number two is uh, is, uh, justconnection opportunities for connection.
And so that means that humans,we need In person physical
contact with other humans, right?
We, that is a, that is asocial and emotional and
physical need that humans have.
And so, uh, communities that promoteand, and provide opportunities for the
(18:52):
individual humans in those communitiesto come out and kind of interact with
each other is really, really important.
And Daybreak does a great job about thatat this, because we have some sort of
standard, uh, we have like some officialneighborhood, uh, Events that happen,
but then we also just have a ton of sortof underground things that kind of pop
up where people are out doing thingsthis last Halloween, a whole row, like
(19:19):
a whole street in Daybreak decided todecorate all of their houses like the
Barbie houses and that got thousands ofpeople in our community and from outside
to come and like, check this out, bumpinginto each other, talking to each other,
right, all and, and, you know, blockingtraffic for the Daybreakers, which Got
a little annoying and we, we definitelycomplained about that for a while.
(19:39):
But it provided this re that was areally, that was a really powerful gift
to have to be given the opportunity togo out and interact with other humans.
Right.
Especially after, you know, the,the, the devastation that was caused
by the lockdowns during COVID.
And so having, having theability to meet in person and
(20:00):
to have lots of opportunitiesfor that in, uh, in daybreak.
Or and in just in any communityis, is really important.
And, uh, and then I think the thirdthing that's really important for, uh,
for our community is a, a willingnessto give generously to the community.
(20:24):
To recognize that there are peoplein the community that, uh, often need
help and that the best way to respondto that is by generously giving and
that's been something that I've beenjust so grateful for again in this
community that I've found in Daybreakis that when I've needed help.
(20:44):
The community has been willing to help.
They've, they've shown up for me.
And that is such a contrast tothe way that I was raised, right?
To a community that, that wasn'tabout taking care of the individual.
It was about exploiting theindividual for the community, right?
The, the cults that I grew up in weren'tabout taking care of individuals.
(21:06):
They were about exploiting them, aboutseeing what, what could we get from
this person at the cost of their, theirPhysical and mental health and, and
so a community that doesn't do that.
It's not exploitative.
That's generous, right?
That gives to the individuals andcares for the individuals because
the community is only as, ashealthy as the individual members.
(21:29):
And so that's kind of what's been onmy mind this morning as I've been, uh,
sort of settling into as the snow isactually, it looks like it started.
So maybe we're getting snowed in today.
So I'm just sort of sittingin the top of my tower.
In the middle of this really awesomecommunity that I love, feeling so
grateful, uh, for the community itself.
(21:52):
And then just for the, the opportunityas humans that we get to rebuild our
communities with each other, uh, over thenext, you know, uh, several decades and
the, You know, I think that's one of thesolutions to, to the apocalypse, right?
One of the ways that we're allgoing to survive and do okay and
(22:16):
make it through is with each other.
And that it really is important,especially as we move into this really
definitely emotionally and verballyviolent, election year to remember that
underneath the politics, underneaththe partisan bickering, underneath all
(22:36):
of the hate that's being spewed, thatwe really are a community of humans.
We're a community of humans on TurtleIsland, and we all need each other.
We all Uh, need the different, uh, diverseskills and viewpoints that we have.
Every person, uh, in this, inthis community is important.
(22:59):
And if we orient ourselves that way,if we think about our communities
that way, that everyone matters andthat everyone is important, that we
actually need all of the humans here.
I think the more, I think the more lovingand accepting and robust our communities
will become, especially as we are,as we're tearing each other, tearing
(23:21):
each other to shreds in this election.
So, uh, that's it for this week.
Thanks you guys for, for, for tuning out.
This should be coming out on April 7th.
So if you are listening to this on April7th and you are around, uh, daybreak
or Harriman and you wanna come outand see me, uh, at a show, I'm gonna
be on Comedy Church, uh, at, uh, theRedemption Bar and Grill tonight,
(23:44):
April 7th from seven at seven 30.
So Comedy Church is a really funcomedy show that's put on by.
Uh, by two, uh, comics,Adam Browd and Greg Kite.
And they formed a churchthat is a comedy show.
So we will be going to church.
Uh, I've been asked to give atalk on the law of chastity.
And, uh, it is going to be a reallyhilarious and, uh, important insight
(24:09):
into that law for all of your posterity.
So you should definitely come out, uh, 7.
30 at Redemption Bar and Grill.
And, uh, Uh, in Harriman.
And if you use my name, Benjamin, uh,when you get your tickets, you can get
them, uh, uh, 20 percent off, so you'llsave two whole dollars on these tickets.
(24:31):
So definitely, uh, come out and, uh,we'll talk to you guys next week.
Thanks.
Alright, welcome, heathens,to Vibing the Apocalypse.
It is day 1, 484 of the apocalypse.
Uh, I hope you're doing well.
Uh, it's April now here in Utah,which means that, uh, we only have
about six or seven more snowstorms,uh, until we have summer in July.
(00:35):
So, looking forward to that very much.
Uh, today's a little bit,uh, a little overcast.
A little, a little, not snowy, butit sort of like threatens snow.
Like every once in a while, I'llget a little, uh, a little wisp.
And my friends up in Idaho, uh,they got snowed on yesterday.
So, stay safe, Idahoans.
I had a, uh, I had a show last night.
(00:59):
I did something called Don't Tell Comedy.
Don't Tell Comedy is a little popup comedy venue where they find
cool little locations throughout thevalley, and they'll do a surprise
lineup in a surprise location.
So you buy tickets for a day,and then you kind of find out
day of where the venue is.
And who the lineup is going to be.
(01:21):
And, uh, I was on the show.
It was at witchy yogastudio, no witchy yoga girl.
That was the name of the place.
Witchy yoga girl.
Uh, I think over in Sandyand it was pretty witchy.
There were crystalseverywhere, which were rad.
I love crystals and a couple, about38 people came out and, uh, we did a
little bit of comedy for them and itwas really fun and it made me really.
(01:45):
Uh, appreciative of the, thecommunity that I live in and
the people that are in it.
And I've been thinking a lot about Ithink been thinking a lot about community
in the context of the apocalypsebecause, uh, As the world becomes more
and more unstable at the top, I'm justthinking about like the, when I think
(02:10):
about the, the, the U S election that'scoming up in, uh, in this year, uh,
it's going to be just awful, right?
There's no, everything about itis going to, is going to royally
suck no matter how it goes.
And what that's sort of done tome is it's made me feel like that
(02:30):
That part of the world is maybe alittle less relevant in my life.
And what maybe is more relevantin my life is the immediate
community that I'm surrounded by.
And I've just felt when I, when I thoughtabout that last night, as I was driving
home from this comedy show, I justfelt an overwhelming sense of gratitude
for the community that I live in.
(02:52):
I live in a reallyawesome community in Utah.
It's called Daybreak and Daybreak is areally cool community because it's, it's.
Very intentional.
Like Daybreak wasn't supposed to be here.
In fact, uh, the land that we're on,I learned this just last night, the
land that we're on that Daybreak isbuilt on, it's way out kind of West
(03:13):
in, uh, kind of West of Salt LakeValley over by the Kennecott mine.
So there's a, some smaller mountainsopposite the Wasatch front, and that's
sort of where Daybreak is, which nowthat I think about it is a little
funny that Daybreak is in the West.
Because Daybreak feels more like a,that feels more like an East name
like, so I don't know why, I don'tknow why they called it Daybreak.
(03:33):
Maybe because we get the sunlightfrom the day as it breaks
over the Wasatch Mountains.
Maybe that's where it came from.
Anyway, uh, Daybreak isa really cool community.
And when it was, uh, but, butbefore it was built out here,
this was like a testing site.
So the dirt that we are on, likethe land that we were, we are on,
they would use for, uh, for testing.
(03:54):
And I don't know exactly what that means.
I don't know if that was like, Idoubt that was nuclear testing.
Maybe it was like smaller bomb testing,or maybe it was chemical testing.
I don't know.
But the comment that I read in ourlittle, uh, I was in like our little,
uh, we have like a little Facebookgroup with, uh, about 11, 000 members.
And, And, uh, kind of in and aroundDaybreak and someone was talking about
(04:15):
how they wanted to plant a garden andthey were asking if the, if the, if
the garden food would be impacted bythe testing that had been done here.
And somebody got on thereand said, yeah, no worries.
There's actually 50 feet offill dirt between, uh, the
testing site and, and Daybreak.
So they piled on 50 feet of dirt over,uh, over the old dirt that was here.
(04:39):
Before they built the, this communityand if that's not an apocalyptic
community, I don't know what itis because we were literally, this
community is literally built on atesting site, which is wild to me.
And how did we do it?
Well, we just piled a bunch of dirt on it.
And then we intentionally created thisreally beautiful neighborhood and Daybreak
(05:02):
is such a, if you haven't ever been outhere, you should, you should come check
it out because it is such a cool location.
And they, they've just reallyintentionally built, there are a
bunch of neighborhoods, kind of subneighborhoods in the, in Daybreak that
all have their own unique kind of flavor.
Like I'm in a place where there area bunch of townhomes, so it feels
a little, a little more, you know.
Urban feels a little more, uh,you know, more city like I'm
(05:26):
right next to the track station.
There's a library.
There's going to be a big old, uh,baseball stadium here pretty soon.
And so there's kind of that vibe.
And then in other parts, there'smore of like a rambler vibe or
like a single family home vibe.
There's an island that you canwalk around, uh, in the middle
of this big man made lake.
And in the summer you can likerent paddle boards and, uh, and
(05:47):
go out on the lake and everythingabout it is, uh, Really beautiful.
I remember the first timethat I came, uh, to Daybreak.
It was such a contrastfrom where I grew up.
Uh, as many of you know, I grew up on aMormon polygamous compound in Wyoming.
And what that looked like,my dad thought that was Zion.
(06:08):
So my dad was trying to build Zionor the kingdom of God in Wyoming.
And what that actually lookedlike was like, You know, three
or four trailers on a hill on aranch in the desert of Wyoming.
So, uh, lots of dirt, uh, lots of corrals.
(06:28):
There was an old ramshackle barnthat was like falling apart.
Uh, there was like tons ofmanure in all of these barns.
Like, there were like, probablylike a football field worth of
corrals with, with cows in them.
And there was just tons of shit.
So it would like, and that wouldlike blow up the hill, uh, and
we'd get, so we'd get like nice,real, uh, nice, like shit storms.
(06:52):
Uh, anyway, so it wasn't like supercomfortable, uh, the trailers that we
were in were, were pretty run down,they would leak, uh, they would grow
mold inside we didn't have like, uh,air conditioning, we had swamp coolers,
which were just like big giant, biggiant machines that you'd soak like water
in these like really gross, uh, Likefabric, all really old gross fabrics
(07:16):
that were sort of on these cages and thenthere was a fan that would blow in it.
And that's how we wouldkeep our house cool.
And also it would smell like,it would smell like a swamp.
And so when I first, when I first came toDaybreak probably five or six years ago, I
was visiting some friends here and I drovein as I drive, drove into the community.
(07:37):
I was just.
It was, it was magical because somuch of Utah is so, has so much of a
monoculture in, in both religion andculture and also in the way that we build.
So a lot of Utah communities, a lotof Utah neighborhoods look the same.
They're very, very cookie cutter.
And when I drove into Daybreak, likeall of the architecture was unique.
(08:00):
All of the houses were different from eachother, but they all had a similar theme.
And, uh, and the, the, the commonspaces or a lot of common spaces,
which I love about Daybreak because itagain is a very intentional community.
It's sort of designed to get peopleout of their houses and interacting
with each other in, in these commonspaces, like these really great parks
(08:21):
and these miles and miles of trails.
And so I'm looking around at thisplace and I'm like, Oh, my God.
This is Zion.
Like, this is what we were, this isbasically what we were trying to create
is, uh, a community that was beautiful,that was, uh, you know, connected where
people were involved with each other.
(08:43):
And, and that's one of the thingsthat I really love about Daybreak
is it's not just the physicallocation, which is, you know, great.
It's the best city built on atesting site that I've ever been in.
But it's also full of these really, reallycool people, because as sort of a newer,
more intentional, more kind of uniqueand, and, uh, specific, uh, community it's
(09:10):
attracting a lot of really cool people.
So it's attracting a lot of peoplefrom out of state when, when
people come, it's nationally known.
So I think that Daybreak.
Uh, two or three years ago on likethe best neighborhood in the United
States, which I don't know how, Idon't know how that competition works.
I don't know who the judge is,so I don't know how cool that is.
But I mean, I have not been,I've not been named the best
(09:33):
anything in the United States.
So I imagine that's a pretty cool thing.
But so people who are out of outof state know about daybreak and
when they come, come here, a lotof them end up in, in daybreak.
And so for Utah, at leastit's pretty diverse.
There are a lot of people from, uh,different, uh, ethnicities, different
states, different hometown, like allof these different places that all
(09:55):
kind of landed here in daybreak andit's created this really, really cool.
Energy here of sort of intentionallyeveryone here, everyone
who's here wants to be here.
They care about the community.
They are engaged in the community there.
And sometimes we have the most crazyarguments, like just because we're engaged
doesn't mean that we always get along.
Like sometimes we have currently we'rein this big fight because Daybreak
(10:19):
puts on puts on these summer concerts.
This whole summer concert series whereevery week they'll bring, you know,
some, usually a cover band of someone,but it's fun and, uh, come out to, to,
to do these, like, uh, this, this parkconcert and it's been so popular that, uh,
That people come from other communities.
(10:40):
And so one of the big fights that we arehaving in the Daybreak community right
now is over some new rules about thoseconcerts, because some residents were
super pissed that, uh, so many peoplewere coming from outside of the community
and they were taking up all the spaceand they were getting all the good spots.
And then other people in thecommunity were like, let's just,
let's, let's involve everyone.
We don't want to have like, We don't haveto like check tickets or anything anyway.
(11:04):
So it was a big kerfuffle, right?
We were, we were all arguing aboutthat for a while and we probably
will be for all summer, I'll bet.
But what I love that sort of underneaththat, right underneath this conflict of,
are we going to kind of close our doors?
Are we going to be, are wegoing to be more inclusive?
Which I think is an interesting, that,that conversation of, do we close
(11:25):
our doors or do we welcome people in?
I think is a really, interesting andimportant conversation to have, uh,
during these apocalyptic times, right?
Like as the, as more people find thatthey have to go other places because
of the impact of climate changeon their, uh, home regions, right?
Utahns love, we love to complainabout Californians moving here, but I
(11:50):
guarantee you we are not done, right?
Like as the oceans continue to rise,California is going to become Uh, much
less pleasant to be in and more and morepeople are going to be flocking to, uh, to
Zion in, in Utah and, uh, anyway, so, uh,I kind of lost, I kind of lost my train
(12:12):
of thought there that where did I go?
So I was talking about people comingfrom California, inclusive or exclusive.
So, so I think that, so I, I reallybelieve that that conversation of
like, do we, do we welcome people?
Or do we close our gates?
That's an important conversation to have.
And I don't know that there'sone right answer there.
But what I loved about this conversationthat was happening in Daybreak, right,
(12:34):
is that we're having sort of thismini, this mini, uh, version of of this
broader conversation that we're havingas American, you know, as, as members
of, as people living in the United Statesabout borders and immigrants, right?
Like we're, that's a bigdeal for us right now.
Do we let them in?
Do we not let them in?
And we're having that same argument in,uh, you know, in Daybreak Utah about
(12:57):
whether or not we let the people from, Youknow, we'll let the people from Harriman
come do our, do our summer concerts.
I have some feelings about that, right?
I, I think we should, that's, I,I've, I've come down on the side
of inclusion, of welcoming, right?
More people, the better.
But what was interesting to meabout this, this debate, right?
This conversation, as it was happeningin my community, it's not so much
(13:21):
that there was an argument about that.
It's that there were, it's thatpeople in the community were.
Arguing about and for the community.
So there was a level of engagementwith the community that was
evident by these people who hadvery strong feelings sometimes.
And I loved that.
(13:42):
I love being involved in a community thatreally cares about the community, right?
A community that's intentional thatsays, you know what, this community
is important and it's important enoughfor me that I'm willing to Take my
time and my energy and advocate forthe kind of community that I want.
(14:02):
Because, uh, that's a level of engagement,uh, communal engagement that I think
is going to be really important overthe next, you know, a hundred years as
we go from more, a more national, morekind of global community to more local.
Right.
As we, as things start to sort ofsettle around here and what's cool
(14:23):
about, uh, this community of Daybreakis that there's lots of conversations
about, uh, the kinds of community thatwe want to create happening right now.
So there's tons of, uh, like manygroups within the community who are
all sort of spinning and interactingand getting to know each other.
I'm part of one kind ofentrepreneurial group of people
(14:43):
that about 1500 people who are.
All on some version of the entrepreneurjourney and, and we're all sort of in
this community as part of daybreak.
Right?
And so, I've just been reallythinking about the, the importance
of intentionally identifying.
(15:05):
Then engaging in your community,and I don't know that community
necessarily is your town.
Uh, daybreak is not a town, it'ssort of a sub HOA, but it's, it's
part of a, a, a broader city.
But I think that it's, and I think we mayneed to get better as a, as a, like, as
a national community at helping peopleidentify what those communities are,
(15:27):
because we, we need to be able to know.
What the, like, as an individual, I livein, I live in myself and then I live in
my family and then I live in my community.
And I think we need to do a betterjob at defining what that wider
community is and and how it.
(15:47):
how it interacts with the individual.
I think we've sort of maybe lost that alittle bit over the last, uh, you know,
couple hundred years of industrialization.
And we want to kind of stepmore in that direction.
And I think for me that, uh, a good, agood approach to defining communities
and defining the community that youwant to be a part of begins with
(16:12):
understanding and defining The valuesthat you want in your community.
So I wanted to share a little bit aboutthe values that I want in communities
and about one of the things that isreally and finding these values in,
uh, in Daybreak and the communitythat I live in has been really fun.
And really life affirming forme and it makes me really happy
(16:34):
to be a part of this community.
And the, the first value thatI think is really important is
that I call it diverse immunity.
I've talked about it a little biton this podcast, but it's the idea
that a community that welcomesdiverse opinions, religions,
backgrounds, ethnicities, humans.
(16:55):
Right.
Diverse and different humans.
A community that welcomes thatdifference is always going to be more
robust and more healthy, more able torespond to existential challenges, to
climate challenges, right, to stresseson the community because it will have
(17:16):
access to To more options, right?
Diversity gives you optionsas an, and as humans, right?
As sapiens, the way that we've survived.
Isn't because we're the most, you know,strong, probably not even because we're
the most intelligent it's because wehave done a really great job at creating
a cooperation that has led to a lotof different options so that we have
(17:40):
different ways of doing things, right?
So that we can go like in, in, inDaybreak's case, so that we can
come to, uh, Uh, a site of land thathad been written off that wasn't
available, that wasn't availablefor development because of testing.
Now there are, you know, thousands ofpeople, probably 14, 000 people who live
here and, uh, and those were becausewe had enough, we had a diversity of
(18:05):
options for what to do with this land.
And so having a, having adiverse community gives you
diverse immunity, right?
It gives you this immune boost.
To survive challenges.
So that's the thing that I thinkis the kind of my first value.
When I, when I'm looking for a communitythat I want to be a part of, and when
I'm trying to promote values withinmy community, the, that's number one.
(18:28):
Number two is uh, is, uh, justconnection opportunities for connection.
And so that means that humans,we need In person physical
contact with other humans, right?
We, that is a, that is asocial and emotional and
physical need that humans have.
And so, uh, communities that promoteand, and provide opportunities for the
(18:52):
individual humans in those communitiesto come out and kind of interact with
each other is really, really important.
And Daybreak does a great job about thatat this, because we have some sort of
standard, uh, we have like some officialneighborhood, uh, Events that happen,
but then we also just have a ton of sortof underground things that kind of pop
up where people are out doing thingsthis last Halloween, a whole row, like
(19:19):
a whole street in Daybreak decided todecorate all of their houses like the
Barbie houses and that got thousands ofpeople in our community and from outside
to come and like, check this out, bumpinginto each other, talking to each other,
right, all and, and, you know, blockingtraffic for the Daybreakers, which Got
a little annoying and we, we definitelycomplained about that for a while.
(19:39):
But it provided this re that was areally, that was a really powerful gift
to have to be given the opportunity togo out and interact with other humans.
Right.
Especially after, you know, the,the, the devastation that was caused
by the lockdowns during COVID.
And so having, having theability to meet in person and
(20:00):
to have lots of opportunitiesfor that in, uh, in daybreak.
Or and in just in any communityis, is really important.
And, uh, and then I think the thirdthing that's really important for, uh,
for our community is a, a willingnessto give generously to the community.
(20:24):
To recognize that there are peoplein the community that, uh, often need
help and that the best way to respondto that is by generously giving and
that's been something that I've beenjust so grateful for again in this
community that I've found in Daybreakis that when I've needed help.
(20:44):
The community has been willing to help.
They've, they've shown up for me.
And that is such a contrast tothe way that I was raised, right?
To a community that, that wasn'tabout taking care of the individual.
It was about exploiting theindividual for the community, right?
The, the cults that I grew up in weren'tabout taking care of individuals.
(21:06):
They were about exploiting them, aboutseeing what, what could we get from
this person at the cost of their, theirPhysical and mental health and, and
so a community that doesn't do that.
It's not exploitative.
That's generous, right?
That gives to the individuals andcares for the individuals because
the community is only as, ashealthy as the individual members.
(21:29):
And so that's kind of what's been onmy mind this morning as I've been, uh,
sort of settling into as the snow isactually, it looks like it started.
So maybe we're getting snowed in today.
So I'm just sort of sittingin the top of my tower.
In the middle of this really awesomecommunity that I love, feeling so
grateful, uh, for the community itself.
(21:52):
And then just for the, the opportunityas humans that we get to rebuild our
communities with each other, uh, over thenext, you know, uh, several decades and
the, You know, I think that's one of thesolutions to, to the apocalypse, right?
One of the ways that we're allgoing to survive and do okay and
(22:16):
make it through is with each other.
And that it really is important,especially as we move into this really
definitely emotionally and verballyviolent, election year to remember that
underneath the politics, underneaththe partisan bickering, underneath all
(22:36):
of the hate that's being spewed, thatwe really are a community of humans.
We're a community of humans on TurtleIsland, and we all need each other.
We all Uh, need the different, uh, diverseskills and viewpoints that we have.
Every person, uh, in this, inthis community is important.
(22:59):
And if we orient ourselves that way,if we think about our communities
that way, that everyone matters andthat everyone is important, that we
actually need all of the humans here.
I think the more, I think the more lovingand accepting and robust our communities
will become, especially as we are,as we're tearing each other, tearing
(23:21):
each other to shreds in this election.
So, uh, that's it for this week.
Thanks you guys for, for, for tuning out.
This should be coming out on April 7th.
So if you are listening to this on April7th and you are around, uh, daybreak
or Harriman and you wanna come outand see me, uh, at a show, I'm gonna
be on Comedy Church, uh, at, uh, theRedemption Bar and Grill tonight,
(23:44):
April 7th from seven at seven 30.
So Comedy Church is a really funcomedy show that's put on by.
Uh, by two, uh, comics,Adam Browd and Greg Kite.
And they formed a churchthat is a comedy show.
So we will be going to church.
Uh, I've been asked to give atalk on the law of chastity.
And, uh, it is going to be a reallyhilarious and, uh, important insight
(24:09):
into that law for all of your posterity.
So you should definitely come out, uh, 7.
30 at Redemption Bar and Grill.
And, uh, Uh, in Harriman.
And if you use my name, Benjamin, uh,when you get your tickets, you can get
them, uh, uh, 20 percent off, so you'llsave two whole dollars on these tickets.
(24:31):
So definitely, uh, come out and, uh,we'll talk to you guys next week.
Thanks.
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