Mountains and Pitfalls

by Amy K. Stewart

Before I could enjoy the beauty of the high places, I had to get around some major pitfalls. To do that, I was going to need precisely what I had tried to leave behind.

Whenever I see a majestic mountain range, it reminds me of a recent summer I spent working at a resort in the Teton Mountains of Wyoming.

At 18, the idea of going away to work at a mountain resort was very appealing to me. I wanted to get away from the pressures of my parents and also of my religion. I planned on keeping my religion a secret the whole summer. I was so tired of people asking questions like “Aren’t you Mormons a cult?” or “Don’t you still practice polygamy?” I thought I would scream.

I decided that I needed a break from religion and that I would not step foot in church all summer. I even left my set of scriptures at home. But the summer didn’t turn out quite the way I had expected it to.

My first day at my summer job, I was invited to a video party in one of the employees’ cabins. I was eager to go and get acquainted with the people I would be spending the entire summer with.

As I neared that cabin that night, I heard a great deal of laughing and talking. Everyone must be having a good time, I thought, but when I opened the door, I discovered that a lot more was going on in there than just a video party. The lights were dimmed, and the room was full of smoke. Couples were lounging around on couches and the floor, drinking various forms of alcohol. Two guys were building a pyramid of empty beer cans on top of a rickety old table and laughing as if what they were doing was the funniest thing in the world. One of the guys threw me an unopened can of beer. I caught it.

Right then I had to make a decision. Everyone seemed to be watching me. If I had been smart, I would have decided what I would do in this type of situation before it even occurred. I looked at the can of beer in my hand. It doesn’t look like anything evil, I thought. It’s only a can of liquid. Just drinking one certainly won’t kill me, I rationalized. It might even taste good. And everyone seems to be having such a good time.

Miraculously, a scripture which I had memorized in seminary suddenly came into my mind. I could only remember the first line: “And the mists of darkness are the temptations of the devil.” Later, I found it was from 1 Nephi 12:17 and was followed by, “which blindeth the eyes, and hardeneth the hearts of the children of men, and leadeth them away into broad roads, that they perish and are lost.”

I tossed the can of beer back to the guy.

“What’s the matter?” he asked, with an accusing look of “Are you too good for us?” in his eyes.

“I don’t drink,” I answered simply, hoping no one would ask any questions.

“Why not?” demanded the other guy who was helping build the pyramid.

I was really on the spot. About half the people in the room had stopped their conversations and were looking at me with curious interest.

“Because it’s against my religion,” I finally managed to blurt out. I sat down on a chair by the table with the pyramid of cans. The guy who had thrown me the can of beer introduced himself as Mark and his friend as Tim. They said they had never heard of a religion that had a rule about not drinking alcohol. I told them I was a Mormon.

“I think I’ve heard of them,” said Mark. “Don’t you all live in Utah and are into polygamy or something?”

I laughed at their misguided ideas and explained to them about the LDS church. They told me about their religions. We had a great discussion.

This was the summer I learned about mountains and pitfalls. During the first few weeks at the resort, I realized that the only way I would be able to combat all the peer pressure was to grow closer to my Heavenly Father. I had my parents send my scriptures, and I found a great branch to go to which held services every Sunday at a nearby lodge. Above all, I set many goals for myself and worked hard to accomplish them.

When I think of goals, I always think of a mountain which needs to be climbed. Reaching the very top of that mountain represents the achievement of the goal.

One day some of the employees decided to go on a popular hike in Yellowstone Park. It wasn’t a very long hike, only about three miles in all, but it was steep and none of us were used to hiking.

The trail started out as a gradual slope. We walked along leisurely, breathing in the fresh air of the rain that had fallen earlier that day. We could smell the aroma of pine needles from the towering pine trees that lined the path.

All too soon, the trail grew steep and became difficult to climb. We stopped at a halfway mark to catch our breath. Some of the group wanted to go back.

“This is no fun. My feet are killing me,” one complained.

“Look, it’s going to rain any minute now,” said others.

Indeed, the storm clouds had come back, and it looked as if they might dump their contents on us at any minute.

Just then, some tourists on their way back down the trail stopped to talk to us. They told us that it was well worth the hike to the top to see the beautiful view. They were very enthusiastic and gave us encouragement.

When we finally reached the top of the mountain, we still hadn’t achieved our goal; there was still the fire tower to climb. We had to go up several flights of stairs and then climb a ladder through a trap door to the top platform. When we finally reached the top of the tower and were able to view the magnificent sight, we all agreed that it had been well worth the effort.

All we could see for miles around were pine trees, gently swaying in the wind. From our vantage point, they looked almost like waves in the ocean. The sun slid out from behind the clouds to cast light upon the entire scene. It was breathtaking.

In a nearby pine, we could see an eagle’s nest. Just as we were about to leave, the eagle came into sight, flying high, coming home to its nest. To think we were up where eagles soar! I will never forget the feeling of accomplishment and the wonder of being able to see nature so closely.

When the summer came to an end, I had avoided the pitfalls which I had encountered from day to day—alcohol, drugs, and immorality. This was only possible through prayer, scripture reading, and church attendance. Without these things, I would never have obtained my goal of resisting temptation during those three months. I reached the top of the mountain. I learned that I could accomplish anything with the help of Heavenly Father.

Photography by Richard M. Romney and Jed Clark