publishers letter

There has been far more change going around the Heber Valley than the weather over the past few months. The Heber Valley has an identity of being a quiet, pastoral community. While our natural resources are undeniably our most glaringly apparent assets, the citizens define the true essence of this community. Frequently in the advertising world, we talk about ‘market differentiators.’ The root of a successful launch or campaign will characteristically involve identifying what makes your product different from the rest of the…

Plan for the Worst, Hope for the Best As a Utah resident, I have come to cherish my desert time. I love the Glen Canyon and using Lake Powell to share the desert grandeur with my children, who are not of the age to go hardcore canyoneering. A handful of years ago, I led my family on a 4th of July adventure to the up-lake region of Powell. Given my predispositions to adventure, nature, and exploration — I charted a course to an area that the National Park Service issued warnings about due to low water. There is no cell…

Do we have any X-Files fans in the Heber Valley? I loved this sci-fi TV drama when it was airing. For the younger, binge and streaming-on-demand crowd — we used to have to wait until the program aired on network TV to view new episodes. I would count the days in anticipation. When that time arrived, I would make popcorn, turn off the lights and try to maximize the suspense and weirdness that each chapter seemed to unfold. All anticipation would build to a satisfying crescendo as the eerie and oddly low budget theme music and…

I live in a messaging world as a profession, and I will share a trade secret with you all. Top marketers identified this concept on Madison Avenue decades ago, and we now have a multi-generational hive of well-trained consumers as a byproduct. Products for consumption may include goods, services, and ideologies — all of which receive promotional support through sophisticated marketing efforts. The obstacle is that freethinkers are bad for business. It is far more advantageous to have a consumer base identifying with your…

I woke up this morning in a classic rock daydream. The tune echoing in my mind was ‘Your Move,’ from the 1971 release of The YES Album by the British prog-rock band, YES. I couldn’t justify a reason why this particular song should be forefront in my mind — so I took a moment to revisit it to see if, perhaps, there was something else there. Take a straight and stronger course to the corner of your life. Make the white Queen run so fast she hasn’t got time to make you wife. ’Cause it’s time, it’s time in time…

Being a teenager is rough. I certainly worked through my fair share of disillusionment during my run through the teen-to-early-adulthood years in my life. Reflecting on those years from my ‘present’ perspective can evoke some feelings of awkwardness. I would be willing to wager that I am not alone in the thought process: “if I could go back then knowing what I know now, I would do differently.” It wasn’t all bad, though. I remember numerous carefree days with no agenda. I remember walking through manicured park lawns…

A Fresh Approach to 2021

I am a stubborn individual. Many times I have pondered whether this character attribute is, in fact, a virtue or a vice. I can see how being persistent in certain circumstances has led me to personal success. I can also see instances where my refusal to alter a course has brought unnecessary hardship to my life. I suppose the answer lies somewhere within the fabled words of Kenny Rogers in that you need to “know when to hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em, know when to walk away and know when to run.” Life is a gamble these…

"Things are tough all over,” a phrase coined by a popular movie from the early 1980’s — but every bit as accurate today as it was then. Surrounded by a national economic crisis, social instability, and political unrest, I think it is crucial to acknowledge that this is not the first time that any of these things have happened in our great nation. If we look back at the pioneers that settled in the Heber Valley, we would recognize how difficult life was for them. An expression commonly used by these pioneers when…

By Ryan Bunnell Publisher, Heber Valley Life Magazine “Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself in your way of thinking.” - Marcus Aurelius - ANXIETY. It is safe to say that every single one of us has processed this feeling in the past several months. This edition of Heber Valley Life magazine has been written and assembled in the middle of the Wasatch County ‘Stay at Home’ order for the COVID-19 pandemic. The continued and now amplified disruption of ‘normal’ to the Heber Valley has…

I have heard it popularly stated that by small and simple things – great things could be accomplished. Spring is a season where I feel this principle is illustrated quite clearly in nature. Consider the example of a small and seemingly insignificant seed, perhaps even invisible to the eye, that has been lying dormant under a blanket of organic cover and snow since autumn. As the snow melts and the temperature increases, that seed begins to germinate and comes to life. Within a relatively short window, that seed grows into a…

One of my all-time favorite science fiction stories centers around a dystopian future in the San Francisco of 2021. In Phillip K. Dick’s 1968 classic “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep,” Earth is suffering from the remnant radiation of a global nuclear war. All remaining life is cherished. Due to scarcity in the marketplace, possessing something like a house pet is prohibitively expensive while, at the same time, encouraged in a society that values life above all else. Thus, bending to the empathetic tendencies of…

I love taking nature walks with my children in the Heber Valley and the fall season is arguably one of the most favorable climates in which to do so. Sometimes we walk the Provo River trails and other times we head for higher ground on any of the numerous and growing trail systems along the benches of the valley. As the children explore, we discuss the taxonomy or identity of the various life forms on the walk. The children drink it up. I attempt to point out the unique characteristics of each plant and insect with…

One of my personal hobbies is styling and tending to bonsai trees. The overall goal behind the art of bonsai is to create a portable window into nature in the form of a potted tree. That tree, in miniature, should illustrate all of the characteristics of an ancient and venerated monument of endurance and survival as it may be found on the mountain itself. The discipline involves, initially, creating a design or a plan generated from careful observation of the natural characteristics of the tree. A good design will…

The transition from winter dormancy to tender spring awakenings has a soft spot in my heart. Our mountain desert environment is so harsh, and yet the most delicate and intricate flora and fauna have somehow become specialized enough to survive our seasonal transitions. The annual rebirth is a miracle in my eyes. When those frail and dainty, newly-emerged little shoots start to stick their heads out from the left-over blanket of expired vegetation of seasons past, I cannot help but think about their – albeit…

One of my favorite life moments is to wake up on a cold, crisp winter morning only to find that a new, deep layer of snow is covering the existing landscape. I love to gaze upon an unblemished field of light, fluffy powder. I adore that fresh coating of pure white; clinging to the trees and softening the rocky summit line of our surrounding mountain landscape — only noticeable after the clouds break and the light returns with all of its blinding clarity. I delight in how the snow drifts and covers everything that I once…

The autumn landscape is a perpetual sequence of change. Within a slight glimmer of time the heat of the high desert summer passes, days grow shorter, the landscape itself explodes with a celebration of color and morphs into a preparatory state suitable for the endurance of the season to come. As we assembled this volume of Heber Valley Life magazine I have seen a likeness between the autumnal transition and the condition of the Heber Valley. The Heber Valley stands in its own transitional period. The acknowledgement of…

The seasonal transition from spring to summer in the mountains is a magical time. The deciduous landscape itself morphs from sterile dormancy to a vibrant, colorful and delightful palate of texture and color. The air is scented with the fragrance of blooming flowers, the dampness of the river bottom and the crisp cleanness that drapes our mountain summits. Children can be found playing in the streets, riding bicycles and celebrating the open-ended freedom of long summer days with limited obligations. Yardwork commences and…