GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KREX) — You can feel it the moment you step foot in Collbran.

It has that thing. That magic.

In the opening trailer to the world’s best-selling video game of all time, the main character asks, “Why did I move here? I guess it was the weather. Or I don’t know that thing. That magic.”

It’s a question, I’ve pondered. Not one filled with regret, far from it. But one that I think of with happiness. Because so many great reasons flood my mind.

But one reason always stands above all else. That thing. That magic.

You can feel it the moment you step foot in Collbran. Or in Plateau Valley.

The warmth, the sense of community. The kindness.

You walk around town and everyone says, ‘Hello.’ Or greets you in some manner. They treat you like a person. Like you exist. That’s special. That’s sacred.

It’s funny to think that just a week ago, I did not know they existed. But yet here they are with welcoming arms, ready to greet me. Ready and willing to cater to my every need.

The people of Collbran are some of the friendliest, most welcoming I have ever met. For that matter, the people of the Western Slope are the friendliest and most welcoming people I have ever met. People don’t just live for themselves around here. They care for those around them.

That’s how team sports work. You can’t be solely focused on yourself – instead, the team’s needs come first. After all, there’s no I in “team.”

So maybe it wasn’t magic.

Maybe that’s how the Plateau Valley volleyball team made it all the way to the state tournament (and won two games there) for the first time in 26 years – kindness and selflessness. Because it’s that kindness and selflessness that oozes from every depth of that town like magic.

I think that’s why I moved here.