WORLAND – "If you want to receive, first you have to give," noted author and speaker V.J. Smith on Friday, during a speech to Worland High School students in the Worland Middle School auditorium.

For an hour, students sat transfixed on Smith's stories of appreciation through kindness, with a focus on using "thank you" as a way to validate others.

A 1978 graduate of South Dakota State Universi...