21 December 2018, Sorrento, Florida
The beginning of a new year is a time to reflect on the past and plan for the future. I would like to share a couple of reflections from my past. I learned a lot about developing talents when I was a youth. I was raised in the western United States at the base of a large mountain, called Mount Timpanogos. My father encouraged me to develop my hiking talent. By the time I was 12 years old I had developed my hiking talent. I was not strong physically, but I enjoyed hiking up hills and mountains and hoped to hike to the top of Mount Timpanogos, the second highest mountain in the Wasatch Range. Elevation 11, 752 feet.
Mount Timpanogos is a majestic mountain that overlooks a large valley. My father and I joined with a large number of hikers in what is known as the Timp hike, held in the month of July. We joined with thousands of people of made the early morning hours to make the hike up the mountain slope. My cousin and I attempted the hike the year before without success. I learned in my first effort to prepare for the hike by exercising more. My father and I joined with many others carrying flashlights, canteens of water, and a few snacks to hike up the path that zig zagged across the mountain, past a waterfall. After what seemed to be hours, we made it to a plateau called Emerald Lake, a pristine body of water that many hikers would stop and rest at before making the final hike to the top.
Some hikers were satisfied with staying at the lake, but I wanted to go to the top. The last part of the hike is more dangerous because the path becomes more narrow and takes you across the face of the mountain. We reached the top and experienced the exhilaration of seeing a great panoramic view of the valley. I learned a lot from this experience about developing talents. My father was a great mentor and encouraged me to develop my hiking skills. As we made the long hike to the top, he gave me encouragement—and I noticed other hikers encouraging each other, sharing water, and helping each other out.
I learned that by developing my hiking talent, I also developed other related talents including endurance, persistence, and overcoming fear. And learn And I learned that we could reach plateaus in our talents, but we should continue on. Another experience I had as a youth occurred in Washington DC at a national scouting convention. On one of the nights of the convention I was invited to dinner at the National Explorer’s Club, a group sponsored by National Geographic. I sat around a table with some wonderful explorers- one that had flown a hot air balloon across Europe, another had canoed down the Nile river. The last speaker on the program was a strong, husky man who spoke with great energy about climbing to the top of Mount Everest. His fingers were worn down by his experience with frostbite, but he succeeded in climbing Mount Everest in the days before modern climbing technology.
At the conclusion of his story, he said: “We all have mountain to climb in our lives. He urged us to dream big, work hard, never give up and enjoy the journey. I have learned since that time that there is joy and happiness in the journey as well as in reaching our goals.