This year, the festival will take place from 29 July – 3 August. International folk dancers are coming from Chile, Lithuania, Martinique, Netherlands, Taiwan, South Africa and Korea to perform at the Springville World Folkfest. All of the participants, musicians, directors and dancers stay with volunteer host families in our community.

If your family would be willing to host 2-4 guests during this week, providing room, board and transportation, please contact Trudy Peck 801-885-6709 or 801-465-8468, or email folkfest09@yahoo.com ASAP.

Contact information:

Trudy Peck, Housing Director, Springville World Folkfest – 801-465-8468, 801-885-6709
Lori Smith – 801-404-4802

7/1 Route 89
7/8/ Skyline Barbershop
7/15 Red Desert Ramblers
7/22 Crosstrung The Cluff Family
7/29 Just Warming Up
8/5 Mid-life Crisis
8/12 Moonlight Serenaders
8/19 Great Basin Street Band
8/26 Mark Owens

We hope to see you all there!

Today, on my usual early morning walk, I was looking at the beautiful world all around me. I stopped to smell the sweetness of pink milkweed blossoms along the side of the road. As I sometimes do, I began offering a litany of thanks for common things.

“Dear God, thank you for this beautiful morning. Thank thee that I live in such a beautiful place. Thank thee for my legs and that I can walk. Thank thee for these milkweed blossoms that smell so sweet. Thank thee that I have a nose to smell them with …”

And then I stiffened in mid-thought. Thank thee that I have a nose …

I stiffened because just the night before, I had seen a story on TV about a young girl in Afghanistan who had no nose. Her name is Aisha. Given in marriage at age 12, she had eventually rebelled against her abusive husband and tried to run away. Her husband and other family members tracked her down and punished her insolence by tying her down and cutting off her nose.

The story horrified me. I could not imagine such heinous cruelty. I could not begin to imagine the evil of men who would maim a woman in this manner – for the crime of standing up against their abuse.

Such stories raise many questions. For me, some of them are, Why should I be so blessed to have a good father and a kind and supportive husband, when Aisha and thousands like her are considered chattel, subject to oppression and unspeakable violence? Why should I live in circumstances where I never fear to speak out? Why should I be so blessed with education and opportunities when so many in the world have nothing?

I do not know the answers to these questions. But one thing I do know: Because I have a nose, I have responsibilities. I have the responsibility of gratitude, to never forget how blessed I am. I have the responsibility of courage, to speak out against evil and stand up for good. And I have the responsibility of service, to do everything in my power – however small – to help make the world better in any way I can.

Sierra Bonita Elementary principal Mike Larsen was recognized for Excellence in Educational Leadership through the University Council for Education Administration by the BYU McKay School of Education faculty for his excellent ability to successfully create change and make improvements.

BYU’s faculty, Denis Poulsen, Shannon Dulaney, and Pamela Hallam, recognized Mr. Larsen at the Nebo School District Board meeting. They stated, “Mike takes the job of training future principals very seriously because he knows how important having an effective principal is on ensuring student learning. We are lucky to have such a bright, talented person helping interns.”

Mr. Larsen mentors interns by sharing professional knowledge that is inherent in the role of the principal. He openly shares his knowledge and exemplary administrative skills.

Nebo Elementary Director, Julie Warren, said, “Mike is a phenomenal mentor for the up and coming administrators. He is cutting edge in his knowledge and practice; so when people have the opportunity to watch him, they learn best practices.”

Mr. Larsen used the Professional Learning Community (PLCs) techniques he learned through the Center for the Improvement of Teacher Education and Schooling (CITES) partnership with BYU.  Mr. Larsen has since successfully opened the new Sierra Bonita Elementary school.

[All photos courtesy Kjirstin Youngberg]

Come and enjoy the Mapleton Chorale’s Spring Concert this Saturday, June 1st, at 7:00pm in the beautiful Maple Mountain High School Auditorium! The concert will feature a variety of music, including Vaughan Williams, Handel, Morten Lauridsen, some Broadway favorites from Les Miserable, Showboat, Wicked, some folk tunes from the American Heartland, French Chanson, and even Hawaiian Folk Song! Free admission. Thanks for your support of the Mapleton Chorale!

As we observe Memorial Day this year, I hope we will all take a moment to remember and celebrate the lives of the brave service men and women who have faced tremendous obstacles with courage and fortitude, and have sacrificed greatly for us to remain free. Today, flowers will dot the landscape, and flags will fly in every corner so that as one of our great patriots Daniel Webster once stated, “. . .their remembrance will be as lasting as the land they honored.”

While serving in the United States Senate I have had the opportunity to visit many places I consider sacred — the medical wards of the Walter Reed hospital where many of our veterans lay wounded;   a beautiful cemetery in Luxembourg where more than 5,000 American soldiers are buried from their service in World War II; and the white marked and unmarked graves of our beloved veterans laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery.  On each of these occasions the reverent, humble feeling that I experienced is untouched and very special to me.

Our nation’s veterans are my heroes.

Our Founding Fathers declared the United States a freedom-loving people – a declaration on which they risked everything – their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor.  Throughout our nation’s history, our liberty, our freedom and our republic have been protected and cherished by our veterans.

And so as we celebrate Memorial Day and decorate graves with beautiful blossoms and place flags in positions of respect for our fallen, I would hope that we might take a moment to honor and pay tribute to the heroes who have paved the road to freedom.

I came across a passage recently that is not attributed to anyone, but is poignant and very fitting for today.  It states, “These heroes are dead.  They died for liberty—they died for us.  They are at rest.  They sleep in the land they made free, under the flag they rendered stainless, under the solemn pines, the sad hemlocks, the tearful willows, the embracing vines.  They sleep beneath the shadow of the clouds, careless alike of sunshine or storm, each in the windowless palace of rest. . .they are at peace.”

Happy Memorial Day!

Maple Mountain High School’s Class of 2013 marched to Pomp and Circumstance on Thursday, May 23, at the Utah Valley University UCCU Events Center. The theme of this year’s graduation ceremony was “There’s No Mountain High Enough.”

Graduates, their families, and others attending were welcomed by Senior Class President Malia Brady. “We have been part of a unified senior class,” she said. “Today we can stand tall, because we did it.” Quoting Dr. Seuss’s “Oh the Places You’ll Go,” she said “Your mountain is waiting, so get on your way” and concluded, “Now we start our journey to climb new mountains.”

Julie Graham, Valedictorian of the Class of 2013, talked about the class’s accomplishments. “Each of us has put in at least 5000 hours completing 26 required class. But we’ve also spent may hours doing what we love best. As we celebrate our past accomplishments, we look forward to what we’ll accomplish tomorrow. There is more music to be written, more art to be made. We are preparing to be game-changers. There is no mountain too high to climb.”

Rachel Warnick, Salutatorian, spoke about looking out on the graduates’ faces and thinking, “Where are all these great people going to end up? As I think of high school, the important memories are of the people. We couldn’t do it without teamwork. We couldn’t climb mountains alone, without our friends, teachers, and especially our parents. But when we work together, there is no mountain high enough to stop us. We’ll face our mountains using the lessons we learned here at Maple Mountain High School.”

Kayla Ellis, Student Body President, then offered a tribute to parents, inviting the graduates to stand and pay tribute to parents by facing them and clapping. She also talked about some aspects of the Class of 2013′s experience, including iPads, a new Pope, a change in the LDS missionary age requirement, Aurora, Newtown, the Boston Marathon tragedy, and various slang, trends, and fads. “What made our high school experience so special, though, is what we learned here. We are Golden Eagles. We came to a new high school and made a name for ourselves, with our own culture and traditions. We are a mountain that cannot be moved.”

In presenting the graduating class, principal John Penrod noted that they are only the second class to spend all three years at Maple Mountain High School. “We have been excited to watch you become Golden Eagles. You are an elite group,” he said. To prove his point, he detailed some of the class’s many accomplishments, including academic, sports, and cultural achievements. “Thank you for all you have given to each other and to the school. You have truly built the mountain.”

Rick Ainge of the Nebo School District Board of Education told the graduates, “In graduating, you have reached a big milestone. This is one of your first great successes, and we hope there will be many more.” The MMHS Chamber Singers then sang “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.” And with that, the 400+ graduates were recognized individually and walked across the stage to receive their diplomas.

Congratulations to the Class of 2013!

Mapleton Ready will hold its monthly seminar on Thursday, May 23, at 7:00 pm. The location is the LDS Stake Center at 970 N 400 E. The presenter is Dr. Steve Aldana.

To be really ready for whatever comes your way, you’ve got to be healthy.  Our health is vitally important, yet it’s something we can’t buy. It has a very short shelf life, so it has to be regularly maintained.  Heart disease, diabetes, obesity and many other chronic conditions are running rampant and on the rise yet we have the most modern health care in history. The solution? It’s not a pill, a diet or a program, it’s much more basic: it’s our lifestyle.

For almost two decades, Dr. Steve Aldana has been a pioneer and best-selling author in the field of healthy and sustainable lifestyles.  He is one of the most sought-after speakers nationwide, with audiences ranging from universities to Fortune 500 companies and even hospitals.  Lucky for us, he is also a member of our community and will be sharing the ABSOLUTE BEST information available on what you need to know and do to realize optimal health.

Ray Pestana, a regular at our meetings, will also share his recent journey from barely surviving a massive heart attack to the best health of his life in just a few months through implementing the lifestyle choices Dr Aldana will be sharing.

This may be the most important workshop in our entire series because it can benefit every one of us every day for the rest of our lives. See you there!

My youngest child graduates from high school this week. In this time of transition, I find myself contemplative. It has been over 30 years since I graduated from high school. Watching lives (including my own) unfold over those 30+ years has been fascinating. Life has a way of teaching lessons. Here are a few I think I’ve learned since my own graduation all those years ago.

Consistent hard work trumps talent. Everyone knows people who are just dripping with natural talent, who never seem to go anywhere. Our society loves the smart, the athletic, the beautiful. We tend to glorify talent over hard work. We should do just the opposite. The risk of talent is that it often lets people slide by without learning how to work. This may work over the short haul, but it rarely works over the long haul. People who achieve lasting success seldom do it without consistent, hard work. No employer will keep an employee who doesn’t show up for work as agreed. No business can succeed without people who do what needs to be done, when it needs to be done. No home can operate without daily hard work. A huge part of success in life is simply getting up every day and doing what needs to be done. Over and over and over again.  Talent is a gift to be appreciated and developed. But hard work will trump talent almost every time.

Participating is more important than winning. Throughout high school, my daughter has run cross country and track. In these sports, a few seconds – or even fractions of seconds – are an eternity, the difference between first and last place. There’s a lot of glory in first place and precious little in last. But over a period of years, a few seconds don’t matter. What really matters is that you run. What you gain by running – health, friends, social skills, hard work, team spirit – is far more enduring than a brief moment of winning. It is far more important to participate than it is to win.

Good social skills will help in everything you do. No matter what you do, you have to deal with people. This is obvious with some jobs, such as sales. But even if you are a research scientist working alone in a lab, you have to get funding; you have to present your results; and you have to get along with colleagues and a boss. People say things like, “I’m going to start my own business so I can be my own boss.” Wrong. When you have your own business, your customers and clients are your boss. Young women sometimes say, “I’m just going to be a mother.” (Personal pet peeve: using “just” to describe “mother.”) But  mothers need the best social skills of all. Mothers spend a huge part of life dealing with people on behalf of their children: teachers, coaches, leaders, friends, and yes, other mothers. The better a mother’s social skills, the better off her children are.

Learning to deal with disappointment and frustration is key. Even the best of lives are full of setbacks. Sometimes it seems like life brings a new frustration almost every day. It’s easy to get stuck on disappointments and wallow in frustrations. But this gets you nowhere. If you want to move forward, you have to learn how to deal with setbacks. It’s even better if you can recognize the opportunity in them. Every setback brings a chance to  learn something. That “something” is often the key to later success. Learn to handle disappointment and frustration, and move on.

People who have a plan do better than people who don’t. Graduation brings big decisions. Work, schooling, service, relationships – it’s the real deal  now. Some people sit back and just take what life brings. Other people decide what they want and go after it. Life can be unpredictable and uncontrollable, but people who are proactive usually do better than people who are passive. Making a plan is the essence of being proactive. Being proactive is the essence of power. Even though most plans will need to be adjusted over and over, they often lead to opportunities you’d never get otherwise. You don’t know what you want to do with your life, you say? Choosing something is always better than doing nothing, even if that something needs to be changed later on. Make a plan and act. It’s the only way you’ll ever figure anything out.

When you’re true to your priorities, you live without regrets. Graduation is exciting – and scary. The whole world opens up. For all the uncertainty, there is one thing you can decide on with rock-solid certainty: your priorities. What’s important to you? Knowing the answer to this question will be a sure compass through any circumstance or change. Life demands sacrificing one thing for another. Life also puts relentless pressure on most people to sacrifice what matters most for what matters least. Don’t do it. You’ll never regret getting clear on your priorities, committing to them, and having the courage to act according to them. It’s impossible to live life without any regrets. But it’s wonderful to live life without major regrets.

Trust your gut and live your faith. Life before graduation tends to be a lot more clear-cut than life after graduation. You have to find your way on a road that often isn’t marked very well. But there’s great comfort in this: Your gut is a better guide than you know, especially when you live true to your faith. If you live true to your beliefs, your gut will usually warn you before big mistakes. (Not necessarily before small mistakes – but you should expect to make those anyways.) Call it what you will, inspiration, the Holy Ghost, or karma, your gut can be a sure guide no matter how foggy the way. Listen to it; pay attention to it; act on it. It usually won’t lead you astray.

To the graduates, and especially my own:

Graduation – what a wonderful time! The world is a big, gorgeous, wonderful place. It’s a glorious time to live. Go for it – with gusto!  With wisdom, and hard work. And with all the love of your parents fully behind you.

Copyright 2013, Chris Hash. May not be republished or distributed in any form without express written consent.