When I first moved to town, one of the first jobs I secured was as a ski instructor at Deer Valley Resort. I had professional experience and industry certifications, and I enjoyed the fast-paced intensity of high-level skiing, coaching, and the guests who frequented the resort in that era. Despite my introverted tendencies, I had an innate ability to think on my feet and pace with the “New York minute,” which led to positive experiences and numerous amicable relationships. It became a job that I enjoyed for 18 consecutive ski seasons.
Deer Valley was much smaller back then, by way of skiable acreage and guest capacity. However, the guests of that era were not stereotypically ‘small’ people in their lives back home. This ‘guest chemistry’ created a unique work environment. You see, for most of these visitors, they were the executive authority in their respective professional and social circles. They were accustomed to respect, exemptions, and special treatment due to the station of their everyday office. As staff, we were familiar with this reality and ran our guest hospitality models accordingly. The ability to service guests in this manner, as if it were a four-star hotel, was a core identity of the company as prescribed by its founder, Edgar Stern.
Occasionally, situations would arise where ‘alpha’ guests clashed with each other. The problem in an ecosystem where everyone is a ‘someone’ is that being a ‘someone’ becomes average. Furthermore, nobody in that particular fish pond is willing to humble themselves or submit at any level because that gesture is foreign to a ‘winning’ mindset. Nevertheless, a guest’s tenure is short-term at a luxury resort, and with that inherent churn, battles are fought, but wars are generally averted.
I like to do many of my downtown errands on foot. On one of these occasions, I was waiting at the crosswalk on the northwest corner of Main and Center in Heber City. My mind was elsewhere as I waited for the signal to change. My daydream was interrupted by a car horn aggressively and repeatedly blaring over the din of traffic. What I looked up to see was an event that saddened me, as it was a behavior that does not belong in our paradisical mountain valley.
I witnessed a person in a Bentley using the horn, the vehicle, and non-verbal communication to bully another driver in an aged sedan through the left turn from Main onto eastbound Center Street. The lead driver was visibly intimidated by the speed and consistency of the oncoming traffic and was, subsequently, not as aggressive as the driver from behind would have preferred. The horn, engine revs, flashing high beams, crowding, and hand gestures coming from the tailing car added to the lead’s panic. The unchecked aggression was not light-hearted, and should not have stood, man. I felt immediate empathy for the driver being victimized by the shortsightedness and impatience of another.
Eventually, the first driver cracked and was pushed through the light by the second, at which point, the lead yielded to the tail, who subsequently ran a test on how long it would take that supercar to go from 0-60 MPH in a 25 MPH residential zone.
The Heber Valley has humble roots. Early settlers of the West endured legitimate hardships and were correspondingly grateful people when life got easier. Here in the HV, unpredictable weather in the shoulder seasons made it so we couldn’t grow much more than hay or alfalfa. Cattle and sheep were the predominant industry, occasionally supplemented by mining opportunities. One needed to work by the sweat of their brow to survive. The concept of a ‘recreational lifestyle’ would have been as intuitive as a foreign language. Death by disease, childbirth, complications of injury, exposure, and even malnutrition were reasonably common. Still, the trials and hardships the early settlers faced helped them appreciate the easier seasons of life, and they found happiness through humility and gratitude.
Hardships make you humble. Humility, if coupled with grace and dignity, facilitates a service-minded outlook. Voluntarily serving others invites the spirit of gratitude, which in turn leads to shifts in perspective, feelings of abundance, and a reduction of fear and anxiety. People who gracefully endure hardships ultimately find joy. Without trials, one lacks a barometer or scale for measuring what is, in fact, difficult, a metric that, when not available, leads to impatient and shortsighted behavioral patterns.
Sitting in prolonged positions of comfort or authority has the opposite effect on human beings than hardships. Arrogance, pride, condescension, and domineering attitudes tend to creep into even the most genuine of hearts when life’s difficulties are obstructed. The tendency to become ‘spoiled’ is an inherent human trait that can, interestingly enough, be observed in all ages, demographics, and locales.
The remedy for this natural tendency begins with acknowledgement that falling into the trap of comfort and privilege is a real possibility and that you are indeed vulnerable. Secondly, one must want to avoid this destiny. With acceptance and desire established, the next step would be to make a conscious effort to implement precautions.
What would these precautions look like? It could be any number of things that remind you to embrace humility as a daily exercise. In some cases, humility will come naturally as life finds a way to create struggle. If ‘life is good,’ one might need to generate reminders deliberately. Serving others, by way of whatever means you may possess, is a great place to start. Service helps human beings to look beyond themselves and build empathetic capacities. Some may relate to physical or material reminders. I know a local ecclesiastical leader who chose to keep the same white dress shirt from the day that he was extended a leadership assignment, which remained a physical reminder to him of where he started, even as it frayed and discolored over 10 years. There are many ways to find humility if one chooses to look. My experience has been that if I don’t actively seek it out, it will find me—and I prefer to choose my battles if at all possible.
I am grateful for the fortunate life I lead in the Heber Valley. I hope that what we publish and promote is received as a positive force serving the community. I find joy in sharing our history and reminding our readers and listeners that the Heber Valley is the gem of the Wasatch, and our lives are blessed daily in this choice community. Our future is bright. A positive mindset sheds light on the doubt and confusion that some people use to promote their agendas. Embrace positivity and find humility in your daily actions this fall. By doing so, you will help build our community and find personal fulfillment. Thank you for supporting our community voice!
