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Show ruin. uniiwnLone reuK new uiuni - weanesaay, uecemoer u ivyy rage I Opinion 4 f Making Christmas merry for all Every year we get a lesson in the Christmas spirit from our readers and other community members who participate in our Christmas Family program. This year, sponsors for 26 families fami-lies have taken on the responsibility responsibil-ity of providing Christmas for people peo-ple who have little to celebrate this year. However, there are still six families fam-ilies in varying degrees of need who could benefit from someone who is willing to provide all or part of a Christmas for them. Even in these prosperous times, with a healthy national economy and low unemployment rate, there are families who are in need. Most are suffering from the common problems that plague our society. Broken families, unemployed breadwinners, illness and varying combinations of all three have created cre-ated families with young children who need the simple basics of life. It has been heartwarming to see how many of you have stepped forward to lend a hand. You help make each Christmas a memorable memo-rable one. It is remarkable that activities like this one are taking place all over. Pleasant Grove High School helped over 400 children with their Angel Tree project. Similar projects have been undertaken at Americna Fork High School, Lone Peak High School, Mountain View Jr. High and Lehi High School. Other schools at all levels have been involved in gathering food, toys or other items to help provide Christmas for those who might otherwise go without. The local Eagles, also in Pleasant The angels among us At last count, therp wpre nn Ipss than three regularly-scheduled television tele-vision programs that revolve around the notion that angels regularly participate par-ticipate in the affairs of this world.' Talking about angels once rather unfashionable, as portrayed accurately accu-rately in "It's a Wonderful Life" is now all the rage. Angel merchandise is everywhere, every-where, a sure sign of mass popularity. populari-ty. There are even scientists attempting to quantify the "angel phenomenon," as they call it. The researchers range from apologists to those who think that believers suffer suf-fer from mass hysteria, the same kind they attribute to those who believe in UFOs. The ever-present media polls suggest sug-gest that the majority of Americans not only are willing to entertain the notion that angels might exist, but can offer anecdotal evidence that ' they do from their own lives or the lives of someone they know. None of this is sufficient to convince con-vince the skeptic, of course, and there are still plenty of those. However, How-ever, to us who believe, and I include myself in that group, scientific wrangling is immaterial to what we can feel not see, touch or hear to be true. The word angel comes from the Greek word for messenger; the spiritual spir-itual capacity that now accompanies the word was gradually added over many centuries. We now think of angels as emissaries of God, but we tend to think only of the kind that float in the air surrounded by light. The truth is that most of God's work in the world is done by ordinary ordi-nary human beings who, when called upon and with the help of the Almighty, can rise above themselves far enough to become instruments in God's hands. To me, anyone who advances the cause of good by helping one of their fellow creatures in a time of need or encouraging them to reach towards their God-given potential is an angel. In my daily life and work, I know so many of these and most of them are quietly going about ministering minis-tering to those they can help, representing repre-senting God in the conduct of their lives, not in any worldly show with a fanfare of trumpets. Near the top of the list would have to be most of the teachers in American Fork Citizen KsvUtah! (ISSN No. 1521-6845) (U.S.P.S. No. 018-580) A member ol NATIONAL NewMtt ASSOCIATION Grove, provided presents and the fixings for Christmas dinner for 41 families. Other Christmas projects carried car-ried out by schools, civic organizations, organiza-tions, churches and individuals are too numberous to mention. Many people have been very busy this season to make certain that everyone celebrates this special holiday. Over the years, the newspaper has had some wonderful experiences experi-ences participating in this Christmas Christ-mas family project, largely because of the giving spirit of our New Utah! readers. It all serves to focus our minds and hearts on the reason for the holiday season the birth of a child in the humblest of circumstances. circum-stances. In that child's brief life span, his sphere of influence was very small, but in the almost 2000 years since his death, his message of peace, love and faith has filled the world. Western society continues contin-ues to consider his birth year as the first year of the modern calendar. calen-dar. But beyond Jesus's historical significance is the difference he makes in the lives of the individuals individu-als who embrace his message. It's good to know that in times when the commercial nature of the holiday season seems to overwhelm over-whelm its spiritual aspects, that many of you continue to keep Christmas with the proper spirit. To all of our New Utah! community commu-nity members we wish you a happy Christmas, along with a heartfelt thank you for your continued con-tinued support of the Christmas Family project. our schools. These dedicated professionals profes-sionals sacrifice a lot to try and help our children realize their capacities and magnify their successes. They deserve an appreciation they seldom receive. Also in their company are the health care and public safety employees in our midst. Someone is on call 24 hours a day to serve us when there is any kind of emergency. emer-gency. Whether nurse, paramedic, firefighter or police officer, most are hard-working people who are genuinely gen-uinely committed to the public good. Our local clergy would seem a more obvious choice, but I doubt that the members of any religious group truly understand all the ways that their leaders influence the lives of those around them. A less-considered nominee might be our young people, but there is tremendous power for good within them. Most of them take it for granted grant-ed that they are expected to help others, and do so without thought of restrictions or return. Also on the list belong conscientious conscien-tious parents, honest business owners, own-ers, caring neighbors and genuine friends. Each of us can look around us and see the positive things that we have gained from these associations. There is no doubt in my mind that unseen forces help shape our daily lives, but I'd also like to suggest sug-gest that the next time you want to see an angel, look in the mirror. There won't be any wings or halo, but I'm certain that God uses each of us in an angelic capacity from time to time. Since He is the author of all good, to do good is to do His will, and in effect, to be His messenger. This is a week when many of us have a special spe-cial opportunity to be just that. May each of us step away from the torrent of busyness' we experience experi-ence at this season of the year long .enough to share our time and our. love with those around us who may need it the most. In doing so we will honor and thank all the angels who have helped us and also, their Master. Published weekly by NewtohJVews Group Telephone Numbers Advertising 4 arculttion 756-7669 Nwi 756-5273 Publisher Brett Bezant Managing Editor Mere Hsddock AF City Editor . . . .Berbers Christiansen Lone Peak Eoltor .Beky Beaton Periodicals Pottage Paid at American Fork, Utah P0S7MASTM: send attest chenQB le S) Met ssb AfflsrioM Pork, UWi S4QQS 59 West Main American Fork, Utah 84003 A few Christmas Can you believe that Christmas is only three days away? I can't. For one thing, there's no snow. Christmas along the Wasatch Front without snow just doesn't feel right, does it. It's kind of scary, too. I mean, not only do we have a brown Christmas, Christ-mas, but we're also worried about having hav-ing brown lawns next summer, unless we get some more moisture in the mountains. Not to mention the fact that the skiing ski-ing is, well, not good. I had a chance to try out Sundance's new man-made snow last week, and it was okay. But they only had time to prepare one run on the bottom part of the hill. The result was it was fun to get on the hill and work out those ski muscles, but after about five runs, I'd pretty well worn out the hill. Like anything else, you need variety vari-ety to make skiing consistently interesting, inter-esting, and while one run may be enough for those learning to ski or snowboard, it's just not enough for the rest of us. So, what I want for Christmas is some snow. I don't care if it is all in the mountains or if it blankets the valley as well, as long as we get enough for a good winter of skiing and a good summer sum-mer of watering the old lawn. (Editor's note: I wrote this Monday, when there was no hint of snow in the air and little hope of snow on the ground. As I drove home early Tuesday Tues-day morning after a long Monday, snow was beginning to fall in very tentative ten-tative flakes. When I came back to work a few hours earlier, snow covered the landscape. So you see, some Christmas wishes do come true and some come true even before Christmas. Christ-mas. By the time you read this, I'll be headed for Alta.) That's fine for me, but what about the rest of you? Well, I can't answer for Winning the Internet bidding I remember very clearly the first time I ever played a slot machine. I was in a bus station, on my way through Nevada on a quick trip to California. Cal-ifornia. I was with a roommate, younger than I was, so she wasn't quite a legal player. On our way out the door, after a quick lunch, I said, "Wait a minute. Let me try this just once." Out came a nickel. I put it into the machine and because I had watched enough television to know to pull the handle, I didn't feel like a complete idiot. At least not yet. I watched the whirling fruits, and noted the first row settled on a cherry. When the second came up with grapes or some other non-matching item, I turned to walk away. I had seen enough TV shows to know that you won when the symbols matched. One or two steps away from the machine, however, and my ears told my something different. I learned that there were different versions of winning. win-ning. Two cherries was enough to earn my two nickels. I resisted the temptation to go on after all we were in a hurry and left with my ten cents. "I doubled my money in Las Vegas," I said. "Wow," responded my roommate unenthusiastically. unenthusias-tically. Not long ago, I demonstrated a similar sim-ilar lack of technological knowledge. I had tried to find a certain book in the retail stores for a gift for Christmas. Christ-mas. Who would believe the "Farm Journal Complete Pie Cookbook" would be out of print already? After all, I've only had my copy for 30 years. Give trucks a break Editor: This letter is written regarding the article "Council hears pros and cons of trucks." As part of a trucking family, we think it is an exaggeration that you cannot hear each other speak when a semi is running. A diesel pickup truck is just as loud or louder. It is true that semi engines vibrate, but they do not cause cracks in the roads, sidewalks or houses. Cracks in roads and sidewalks are caused by settling, heavy traffic and water going down into little cracks, freezing and expanding. We have never seen or heard of cracks in houses being caused by Deadlines. Classified Advertising ...Tuesday, noon Display Advertising ... .Monday, 5 pm News Monday, 2 p.m. Missionaries Monday, 2p.m. Weddings .Monday, 2 pm. Sports Monday, 10 a.m. Community Calendar . .Monday, 10 a.m. Letters to the Editor . . .Monday. 10 am. Obituaries Tuesday, 11 a.m. wishes for north Utah County everybody, but I've thought of some really nice presents for others. Here's what I'd like to see some people find under their tree when they wake up Christmas morning: Lehi City: A giant siphon to drain all that remaining swamp land inside the city limits. Eagle Mountain: Everything Eagle Mountain Properties promised to give them when the town was founded along with their golf course, airport, parks and community college. Hey, it's a big list, but Eagle Mountain people think big. Saratoga Springs: A boat dock for the rest of us so that Saratoga Springs residents can enjoy their private dock without trespassing on public property. proper-ty. American Fork City: One city council meeting where they aren't "on camera" from start to finish. American Fork residents: A brand new library that is actually open and ready to use. This should come along about February, er... March, er... April.... Well just have to wait and see. Pleasant Grove City: A shiny new freeway interchange of its own. Cedar Hills: A little respect from its neighbors. Lindon: A new road to go with its new movie theater. Alpine City: A benefactor to help fund the city's purchase of conserva QiiaHJEliBSD ( I had just about given up any hope of finding it when I mentioned it to a co-worker. Denise told me to try the Internet. A look at a couple of those sites still proved unfruitful (see the Las Vegas connection) so she suggested suggest-ed eBay. I had gone into work a little early that day so I could search on my own time. It took a little longer than planned, though, because I was still quite a novice and had to learn my way around the site. A search for that particular item was quite easy, since I had access to a detailed description. At first, there were two of them available. I bid on the higher priced one, since I planned on giving it as a gift and I wanted it in good condition. I set my bit limit several dollars over the suggested price and went home confident that I would come back the next day, ready to send for my bargain. Unfruitful was the theme for that day, however, as someone outbid me by 50 cents. However, I was getting hooked. I remembered there was another of the items available for sale. In fact, some Reader's Forum semis, unless they've run into it. Cracks in houses are caused by old age, settling and weather. We have talked to various home owners who live by truck drivers who park their trucks at home and so far no complaints. We do not understand how it could decrease property value. There is a city ordinance in effect on where and how long a vehicle can be parked, but we have seen cars sit in the same spot for months and years before anything is done. A truck owneroperator has parked his semi down by the old Fred Meyer building and had his trailer vandalized and chains stolen. He parks a personal vehicle down there for transportation to his home and it's been vandalized also. He We welcome) letters to the editor. All letters murt Irdude tr author's name (printed AND signed) and a telephone number. We reserve the right to edH letters for clarity, punctuation, taste and length. Letters are welcome on any topic. HOW TO REACH U8 By Man. '. By Fax P.O. Box 7, American Fork, UT 84003 768-8274 59 W. Main, American Fork tion easements so people will stop putting extravagant houses higher and higher on those beautiful hill-sides hill-sides Highland City: A huge overpass to get cars from the west of Highland to Lone Peak High School safely without going through anybody's neighborhood, neighbor-hood, any local parks, or other cities. The Alpine School District: Enough money to make the old schools as appealing as the new ones, so students stu-dents will attend their local high school by choice instead of by royal decree. Lehi High School: Test scores that are as good as those at American Fork High School. The football team did it, and so can the studentbody. American Fork High School: A building as nice as the world class one at Lone Peak. (See Alpine School District.) Dis-trict.) Lone Peak High School: Another exit from the school parking lot. County Commissioner Dave Gardner: The sudden appearance of the hitchhiker who offered him the tainted drink, to corroborate his version ver-sion of the events that led to his arrest for DUI. Mayor Ed Sanderson: A construction construc-tion kit so he can continue to make more storage space for Pleasant Grove City. American Fork's Non-partisan Citizens Group: A party. They really need one. How about New Year's Day? UDOT: A Toy Story 2 Cone Game so they can learn how to get from one place to another safely. (See the movie, then youH get it.) Micron: A Y2K disaster in Asia that shuts down the competition, causing their stock to rise and their Lehi facility to open. To all of you: Love, peace and a sense of humor. war one else thought it was such a good idea, that by the time I checked into it again, there had been two more added. I placed a bid for the second one. I set my limit higher than I had the first time. After all, I had discovered how disappointed I was the previous day. Right after I entered my maximum bid, the computer notified me that someone else had bid higher. I wasn't going to let them get away with that, so I upped the ante. I left that day as the high bidder. I didn't have the confidence of the iprevious day, however. When I returned the next day to check on my progress, I was no longer in first place. In fact, there must have been a bidding war going on, because the price was a lot higher than I anticipated. antic-ipated. Was I going to let someone get away with my item? I asked. Of course not. I abruptly entered another bid, setting my limit and sticking with it. I only placed one more bid. I stuck with my plan, thinking I had two other chances to bid on the same item later in the week. I went home, and told my husband that we had lost. Just like when I had my experience with the cherry and the apple, the machine had a surprise for me. I returned the next day to discover that I had been indeed the highest bidder. I'm pleased to be able to get the item. I think the intended recipient will truly enjoy it. I hope so, because I'm afraid the last couple of times I was bidding against myself Oops! spends over $30,000 a year in fuel and 60 to 70 percent is bought in A.F. He has a local CPA and bookkeeper book-keeper which helps support this town. Regarding Al Schmuhl's comment on safety in a U corner; why didn't he mention the 28 foot travel trailer that was parked in the apex of the mentioned U corner for five months? It was less than 100 yards away from the truck, parked in the straightaway, straight-away, that he is complaining about. Business owners pay rent for buildings to run their business, just as truck owneroperators make payments pay-ments on their trucks to run their business. We are iust like everybody else; trying to make a living.' Becky Jensen Shawn Whitman ByE-Uak. subsenptjon price $24" edttorOnewutah.com i pOOK |