Breaking bread and drinking beer. That may be the ticket to working through some of the acrimony we see in the country (and state) these days.
My husband is a family practice physician in Crete. His office has five physicians and five mid-level providers. There was some thought to having a “post-pandemic” party last summer, including providers and all other medical and support staff at the hospital. Then the pandemic didn’t end.
Laura Ebke, Community Columnist
Post-omicron, though, it seems like there is a new desire for co-workers to get together socially — and that we might be getting to the point where it’s safe to do that. So last week, the clinic providers decided to have a gathering at Lazy Horse Brewing outside of Ohiowa. Ten staff, spouses, and the hospital administrator. It was an experiment — to see whether people were ready to get back together. I’m here to report that not only were they prepared to get together, but they were already talking about the “next event” and where it should be.
For those who have never been to Lazy Horse (it’s in this year’s Nebraska Tourism Passport package), you should make the trip. They served up their wood-fired pizza, and of course craft beer, for the group. We broke bread together, talked, had a brew together and even fought about politics.
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Despite the common medical backgrounds, the political opinions were not monolithic. We found, though, that it’s far more unusual for political disagreements to devolve into anything more than pointed banter when you’re sitting across the table chewing barbecue brisket pizza and washing it down with salted caramel beer.
Republicans, Democrats and Libertarians sat around a table, arguing about the current state of politics — who was to blame, how it could be better, whether we were facing the end of the republic. And while we didn’t reach any conclusions, we proved that it was possible for people who disagreed to have a heated conversation and then walk out the door asking when we would do it again.
I just finished reading Jon Meacham’s biography of Thomas Jefferson. It’s incredible how many times discussions at taverns (or in private residences) while eating and drinking was part of the discussions in the early days of the republic. Even people who didn’t like each other very much (like Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton) could have conversations over dinner and drink.
When I was in the legislature, I kind of grumbled about all the social events we were expected to attend. But some of those events, when members were willing, helped build relationships that could survive political disagreements. Harsh feelings are slow to exhibit themselves when you’ve sat next to someone you usually disagree with, but with whom you’ve had a delightful conversation over dinner and drinks — about vacation plans, or the family or stories from college.
Neither Nebraskans nor Americans are monolithic in their views. There may be majority views, but even those in the majority on one issue likely don’t see everything the same way. Dinner and drinks (or coffee and muffins) can force us to listen to others. We all know it’s not polite to talk while you’re chewing your food, so while we’re chewing, we can be listening.
Listening doesn’t require agreement, but it can help to build understanding. Understanding helps us to see those with whom we disagree as fellow travelers through this life, with all of us doing the best that we can and struggling to find answers to the problems that vex us, and strategically, understanding what those on the other side are thinking should be able to help us develop plans that can succeed.
Now that we’re starting to put the pandemic behind us — whether because it’s going away, or we’ve all just had enough and want to get back to normal — let’s not forget the value of breaking bread with those who we might not see eye-to-eye with, as well as with those who think like we do. We might just find that new solutions to the numerous problems our state and country have might make themselves more apparent if we’d listen while we take turns chewing and taking a drink.
2021 columns by Community Columnist Laura Ebke
Laura Ebke is a wife, mother of three and grandma of one. A lifelong Nebraskan who has lived in Crete for more than 25 years, she has a doctorate in political science from the University of Nebraska, serves as senior fellow at the Platte Institute and previously served four years in the Nebraska Legislature and 12 years on the Crete school board.
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Laura Ebke is a wife, mother of three and grandma of one. A lifelong Nebraskan who has lived in Crete for more than 25 years, she has a doctorate in political science from the University of Nebraska, serves as senior fellow at the Platte Institute and previously served four years in the Nebraska Legislature and 12 years on the Crete school board.
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Laura Ebke: The importance of breaking bread (or muffins) and civil discourse - Omaha World-Herald
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