Seven years ago I was in Park City covering my first Sundance Film Festival when Dean called and invited me to review movies for a TV show he was producing. Of course I said yes, and a week later I drove out to the Megaplex in South Jordan and kicked off a three and a half year run on the KJZZ Movie Show. The Movie Show was actually the third show I’d worked on with Dean, an ex-BYU football player who had spent his career in the Utah media. We met in 2007 after I’d joined a sketch comedy show called B All Over, then Dean hired me to produce a morning news program he was putting together called the KJZZ Cafe. In our little corner of the Utah media crucible, Dean and I got to be good friends. He is one of those guys who just seems to know everybody, and it was great to benefit from his perspective and experience. What’s interesting as I reflect on those shows is how I got to know Dean in a different way each time. For B All Over, things were very casual, and we’d joke about local politics during tapings. Things were a lot more tense on the Cafe, as we had to hammer out a 2 1/2 hour live broadcast every morning, and we worked much more closely as we navigated the presidential election and the recession in 2008. Then, with the Movie Show, the focus swung from national politics to pop culture, and a shared ambivalence for the pomp and circumstance of Hollywood. Through all of it, Dean and I spent lots of time talking and strategizing, and of course the conversations extended far beyond the subject of the show. It’s been almost four years since the Movie Show to an end, but it has been great to stay in touch with Dean. We met up for a sandwich at Vito’s last fall, and talked for so long that we finally had to move outside after they closed. That’s just the way it is when you’ve built a real history.
A couple of weeks back I was going about my business on a Friday night when I got an unexpected call from my friend Chris. “Are you seeing this moon?” he asked. The moonrise that night was stunning, and knowing that I was a photographer, Chris wanted to give me a heads-up in case I wanted to shoot it. “Thoughtful” is just one of the ways I’ve come to describe Chris over the last few years as we’ve become friends. Early on, we’d talk movies between meetings at the ward on Sundays, or during activities when he was in the Elder’s Quorum presidency. I’d learn about his hunting adventures or his experiences traveling all over the country for his sales job. But as I got to know Chris better, and watched him get called into the bishopric, the quality that became most obvious was how much he loves being a dad. Whether listening to him share his testimony in church, shooting the bull at some neighborhood activity, or sitting down to some fine BBQ at Holy Smoke, it doesn’t take long before Chris will bring up his family. I’m not sure I can name a better example of someone who is always thinking of others. (Funny enough, Chris’s profile came up in the Power Lunch schedule on the same day as our Facebook friendverssary, or whatever it’s called.)
I’ve had a lot of great teachers over the years, and I’ve gotten to know a lot of great teachers as I’ve crossed over to the other side of the desk. As I think about it, my friend Sam might represent the pivot point between those worlds. When we met at the University 32nd YSA Ward, Sam was teaching history at Davis High School, and years before I stepped in front of my first USU composition class, our regular conversations about life and the meaning of it all would feature insights from his day job. It was no surprise to learn that “Mr. Gibbs” was a popular teacher among his students—I’ll never forget one comic episode where one of his former students started attending our singles ward and struggled to call him by his first name. But however you know him, I’ve rarely come across anyone, teacher or no, who was so enthusiastic about his job. After my friend Sam married my friend Christy (a fun phenomenon that happened a lot during that stretch at the U32), they moved back East, where he did grad school and shifted into the administration world. A few years and a few kids later, eventually the path led to St. George, where Sam is now Principal of a charter school. Thanks to a well-timed route south on the way to Death Valley, I was able to add one of my favorite fellow teachers to the Power Lunch series last October. It was awesome to catch up, and learn about Sam’s exploits in Southern Utah, which seem to feature every bit of the enthusiasm he displayed years when I first met him. I’m sure Sam would be capable at most any job, but I have a real hard time imagining him outside the world of education. I’m guessing his former students would agree.
