Reflection 17 - JASON HEWLETT

Engagement

The Promise: Pioneer TREK

“Your calling is to walk 32 miles over 4 days acting as Ma & Pa to 9 kids you’ve never met, everyone dressed in vintage 1840’s clothing you’ll make yourself, while pulling a handcart weighing between 800-1,000 lbs, to re-enact the Pioneers crossing the upper plains of Wyoming arriving into Utah.” I don’t know what kind of crazy stuff your Church asks you to do, but this wasn’t an ask, it was an assignment, and my wife & I readily accepted. We had been assigned to the same 4 years prior, the last time our community participated in the Pioneer TREK, but the doctor at the E.R. told us we couldn’t attend due to a legitimate last minute illness, so this was our chance at redemption. Truth is, I’m about as helpless in this type of situation as your stereotypical man is assumed to be. I mean come on – tying knots, setting up and packing camp, creating shade out of tarps, fixing blisters, kids and wife expecting me to know what I’m doing while acting like I do… Had they asked me for a performance, to play the piano, to tell a story or joke, even to type

July 28, 2019 16 Comments

Events

Happy Father Figure Day

We must have been 12 years old when our scout troop first went skiing with our new Boy Scout’s scoutmaster Rick. He seemed cool, had a great manly beard, nice dark full head of hair, a friendly smile, lived in a big house, and wore perfectly fitted clothes to Church. Thinking we were all pretty hot stuff as pre-teens, growing up in Park City, UT, where they give you a week off of school during the winter called “Ski Week” just to perfect your skills on the famous snowy mountains, we went up to the top of one of the toughest runs at Park City Resort and looked down at the moguls before us. We pretended to not be scared, but this run was extra crazy, if I recall it was called Thaynes Canyon. To a kid the moguls were mountains unto themselves, and watching the best of the best try this run and eventually biff it into a yard sale as we laughed from above riding up the lift, always reminded us to take a different route down. As our scoutmaster, Rick, looked at us he said, “Guys, you can do this”, he must have sensed our nervousness.

June 16, 2019 6 Comments

Books

Facing The Fear: Promise to Self

In the movie “The Wizard of Oz”, little Toto the dog discovers the all and powerful Oz behind the curtain. Oz is freaked, tells them “Don’t mind the man behind the curtain!!!” Well, I’m no Oz great and powerful, but here on this blog I pull the curtain back willingly with the intention of giving you a glimpse behind the make believe that is our social media appearances and perfect little lives, so that you catch perhaps something familiar in my vulnerability. As the funny guy on stage, who then takes the audience to a place of authenticity and surprise with insights unexpected, here is my soul and greatest challenge, bare for your bravery to kick in where mine lacks. On my Calendar lives a “To Do” that is so imposing, so terrifying, so Raptor, that it has crippled me for years. Yes, I have had the same daily To Do on my calendar for years with no end in sight. Daily I return to bed disappointed that I didn’t even try to tackle this To Do. I feel pathetic every night I lay me down to sleep, no matter if I got a standing ovation for thousands of

May 26, 2019 11 Comments

Business

Becoming Legendary Leaders: The Promise to Mentor

“Your son has some, well…. challenges,” the teacher began. “Such as,” asked the mother. “Well, reading is an issue in multiple areas, especially out loud and comprehension. Same with math, the concepts just aren’t working in his mind. His writing is compromised and his handwriting is illegible. He seems fine with social skills and making friends, but we are a bit concerned he is doing odd things with his face and mouth which are distracting to others,” she continued. “What can we do to help him?” the mother inquired. “We recommend first you stay after class and assist him in extra reading, or we will need to hold him back. First grade is an excellent time to hold a child back who is struggling or behind. We also recommend a speech therapist, who would double as a psychologist due to some of the issues we are noticing,” the teacher concluded. This may sound like the beginning of the movie Forrest Gump, but it was actually my 1st Grade teacher, Ms. Davis, attempting to break it to my Mother that I had a few issues. Genetic and learned. Dang. So she did what any Mom would do: She packed me a sack, put it

May 19, 2019 4 Comments

Announcements

The Rebel & The Promise

A little over a week ago I sat at my home office desk and wrote a letter, with tears in my eyes, to my family. It was to be my final thoughts, hopes, and dreams for them. I left it in my desk drawer to be found in case I never returned home from the longest trip I’ve ever taken. Not sure if you’ve had those sobering reality-check thoughts and fears in anticipation of your travels, but they go through my mind on occasion. This time it was due to my first trip to Malaysia, flights over oceans, in countries I’d yet to travel. Obviously I’m now home, having traveled in air some 60 hours, only to spend a quick 48 hours on the ground in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia itself, a roundtrip to crush all others and my mettle for airline survival from Saturday to Wednesday. Wow. Crazy. Why would I share such an intimate detail into my psyche with you? My deepest fears, concerns, and worries which we all want no one to think we ever have? Because writing this letter to my family was a time for reflection and I had but one testament for them, and

April 21, 2019 8 Comments

Business

The Promise to Adapt

Last week our family came home to a dishwasher that had flooded our kitchen, warped the wood floors, water seeped into the basement, and the ensuing mess that creates. Insurance adjusters, disaster cleanup professionals, holes drilled in the basement ceiling, cracks in our floors, high-powered fans and de-humidifiers now cover our home, as we determine what should be ripped out first. The dishwasher is the casualty, and as my mother-in-law repeated over and over, “Welcome to home ownership!” (we have lived here for 14 years, so we are grateful she is finally welcoming us to this lifestyle 😉 ) As this was all happening in our kitchen I had just finished writing a poem for my wife and was preparing a song for her Grandpa’s funeral, Ray Limberg, one of the greatest men I’ve ever known and easily the best grandparent I’ve ever seen. His legend is enormous, the things he did to engage and be present in the lives of his grandchildren are astounding and will live on. The end of an era, we walked through his home and collected some bolo ties and belt buckles in his memory before they empty it all out and put it

March 24, 2019 4 Comments

Engagement

Thank You RootsTech

This past Saturday morning I thought I was simply introducing the world’s greatest ukulele player, Jake Shimabukuro, and then closing out the final session as Emcee of RootsTech, the largest genealogy conference on the planet. However, as I settled in to gather my thoughts for the words I might say in half an hour I suddenly heard, “Jason, we need you on stage right now. Can you do a 30-minute show before the session starts?” Rushed to the stage I winged my best set, accidentally not having warmed up my voice, while singing, doing impressions, telling jokes, and keeping the 10,000 person audience of children, parents and grandparents happy while the session got closer to the telecast start time, about to roll live, shown to hundreds of thousands around the globe. Thus is the life of the Emcee. I only Emcee a few events per year, and those are usually for clients that commit to having me return year after year. The challenge of preparation for these types of events is enormous, and a giant promise is made between the client and me: Trust me and you will get more than you paid for. Over the past

March 10, 2019 2 Comments

Engagement

The Choice Between

2 Mondays ago we welcomed the newest member to our family, a beautiful, excited, chew everything, diarrhea everywhere, happy Goldendoodle 8-week old pup. His name is Buster Silvermine Bojangles Dude Hewlett. We love him. As we got all set up, after a trip to the store to buy a kennel, bed, and chew toys, the time quickly passed from PM to AM as the kids were still up playing after midnight with our new little friend. Suddenly I heard an explosion. No one else heard it, as they were making noise with the dog, but as the Dad I seem to hear everything. Running outside there it was: A white car smashed into the neighbor’s Ford Explorer that is always parked in front of their home. No tire marks, no brake engaged, simple a smashed little white car into a vehicle twice it’s size, and it had pushed it over 10 feet forward. I bet it was going over 40 on a 25 mph street. A man came tumbling out of the driver’s side, wincing, choking, swearing up a storm in agony. I shouted, “Dude, are you ok?” He ran. Down the street, up on the sidewalk, gimp-limping away

February 10, 2019 18 Comments

Family

The Promise: Raising Legendary Leaders

The other day a man took my order at a restaurant. When I began to speak his eyes widened and he said, excitedly, “You’re Jason Hewlett! You came to my school when I was in 3rd grade. That was the best assembly of my life!” Looking at his full grown beard, head balding, and the twinkle in his eye, it hit me once again how long I’ve been doing this whole being on stage thing. It is life’s great compliment when someone remembers you fondly from their childhood as having made a difference in their lives, and equally makes you realize how old you’ve become, and you do your best not to feel or act elderly despite the gray in your beard. What is The Promise that you have made for your life’s work? This week I am extra pensive and sober, as we bury a neighbor & friend, a young Mother my age, who just passed from ALS. A few days later, we lay to rest the Mother of one of my wife’s best friends, who passed suddenly of a heart attack in the prime of being a Grandma. Once again: What is The Promise that you have

February 3, 2019 4 Comments

Business

Thank You 2018

As you look back on 2018 may I make a recommendation? Some of us will say, “Yeah baby! That was awesome!” Others of us will say, “Holy heavens, I can’t believe it’s over. Bring on a New Year!” Wherever you stand, know that sometimes the most important thing we can think are simply thoughts of gratitude that we are still alive. Remember Thumper quoting his mother in Bambi: “If you can’t say somethin’ nice, don’t say nothin’ at all.” For us Hewlett’s we can say we are grateful we made it, and here are some highlights along the way that really stood out from years past. We are thankful to all of our clients who created opportunities to spread the message of The Promise, and never before has The Promise been so true and needed for every audience that hears it. Highlights from 2018 Events included: Grand Cayman Islands events in April for A Place for Mom and Principal Financial Groups, 2 events on the same island back-to-back that made for a very fun experience renting our first private jet…er…private puddle jumper for a very hefty sum. Wrote about that adventure HERE. Retirement Party for Jewish Rabbi

December 30, 2018 2 Comments

The Promise Blog

The Promise: Pioneer TREK

Happy Father Figure Day

Facing The Fear: Promise to Self

Becoming Legendary Leaders: The Promise to Mentor

The Rebel & The Promise

The Promise to Adapt

Thank You RootsTech

The Choice Between

Thank You 2018

Want to receive inspiration and laughs weekly from Jason?

Recent Post

Farewell to Ella Rae

The Event I Said No To

They Can’t Answer a Question You Never Ask

Google Me

The ETA on CEP from NSA is ASAP

Archives

Categories