A Nostalgic Momma Bear
Well, 3 blogs into my 100 days of Scouting, and I’ve already dropped the ball! Well . . .ok, not completely true . . . I’ve been out of commission with the cold/flu that’s been floating around this season.
On Saturday, I had the opportunity to go out and spend the day with the troop. They were out camping during our annual “Arctic Blast”. We started this as an annual tradition over 5 years ago when we started the troop. It’s great to have traditions, that’s what memories are made of.
Unfortunately, I started to not feel well, and had to leave before the campfire. Those young men (and the Scoutmaster), however, are awesome. They all know what my favorite part of a camping trip is ~ so I was able to listen to the campfire program via speaker phone. How awesome is that?!?!?
Tonight we had our Blue and Gold with our original feeder pack (we have two). This is the first year my son was able to participate as a Boy Scout vs. a Cub Scout. And, I confess, Momma Bear had a trip down memory lane watching all those young men earn their beads and ranks. There have been many discussions in other blogs about the memories we help create for each of these boys. In return, they give us many memories as well.
I remember, very fondly, when we first started the troop over 5 years ago. We looked at these 6 young men before us, I thought . . .uff dah . . . what did we get ourselves into? We affectionately referred to them as the “Goof Troop”. It has been completely amazing watching these boys grow and learn. I can’t help but have a sense of something similar to “motherly” pride as I watch them grow.
I also remember when I started out with my son’s den as Tiger’s, the same year we started the Troop. They started out as these bright eyed, tiny little guys . . . and are now Boy Scouts. Where does that time go??
At tonight’s Blue and Gold, we had one boy cross over. I couldn’t seem to contain my very large smile as yet another boy joined our little Scouting “family”. In many respects, especially in our small little community, that’s what we are and have become ~ a family. Along with their parents, my husband and I have the distinct honor of being part of these young men’s lives. We’re able to be there for them in Scouting as well as out in the community. To me, this is one of the perks of being in a small community. The boys and their families aren’t strangers to us. We see them in, basically, every aspect of our lives. (and yes, there are disadvantages to this as well).
Our goal, as leaders, is always to help these young men. To teach them, and help them grow into great adults. What we don’t anticipate, however, is how much each of them can touch our lives as well. I’m looking forward to many, many more memories with our little “family”.
Many blessings to you all . . .
A Scout is Reverent
How often have we, as Scout Leaders, recited the Scout Oath, Law and Motto with our youth?
On my honor, I will do my best
To do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law;
To help other people at all times;
To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight.
The United Methodist Church held Scout Sunday on February 13th. This gave me the opportunity to reflect on the similarities between being a Scout and being a Christian. It made me wonder, “what are the differences between a good Christian and a good Scout?” The answer was actually pretty easy: Nothing.
It’s pretty simple actually . . . a Scout is: Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean, and Reverent. Aren’t these all the same qualities we, as Christian’s, aspire to have? Eerily similar to our 10 commandments, isn’t it? I doubt this was an accident. In my mind, if you have a Scout that is Reverent . . .all of the other things fall into place right where they’re supposed to be. So that makes me wonder: why is ‘Reverent’ last? Hmmmmm . . . .
Many blessings to you all 
Chunky Monkey
If you’ve seen the Disney movie ‘Up’, then you’ve had the opportunity to meet Russel.
Russel is an adorable little scout with a big heart. Throughout the entire movie, Russel has one goal: to help the elderly man. Russel behaves exactly as a Scout should.
Despite all of his hard work in the past to earn all of those merit badges, I have bad news for poor little Russel. Because of BSA’s new weight requirements, Russel may find having his physician sign off on his health form, could be a bit of a challenge.
I have mixed feelings on the new requirements. On one hand, I completely understand that the intent is for the safety of the scout and the leadership. None of us want to find ourselves in a situation where someone is struggling during an event because their weight is causing limitations. That being said, you can be overweight, yet, very healthy. Being skinny or the ideal weight does not mean you’re physically fit.
I am concerned about what type of image BSA is sending to our youth. Please don’t misunderstand what I’m saying: yes, we need to encourage today’s youth to get off that couch, get outside and be active; yes, we need to encourage them to put the Doritos down and grab an apple. However . . .isn’t it also our job to offer encouragement and help them feel good about themselves? We don’t limit the activities for someone who has physical or mental limitations . . .why would we do that to someone who’s struggling with their weight?
I’m curious about how others feel about this change. Maybe for some, you won’t even notice. For us, we’ve already noticed. We’ve already had one boy denied the opportunity to join us at a high adventure base. Heart breaking to say the least.
I’m also curious about what other units are doing to help encourage your scouts to be more healthy. Me, personally, I’m trying to lead by example: eating healthier and getting more exercise. Is it easy? Oh heck no!! But then again, is anything worth doing ever easy? Generally speaking ~ no, not really.
Until next time, blessings to you all I’m looking forward to more #100DaysofScouting.
100 Days of Scouting
I must wish a very belated birthday to Boy Scouts of America. On February 8th, the organization celebrated 101 years ~ AMAZING! As part of this, there are several who have set the challenge of blogging for 100 days. I’m late to the party, but am hoping to catch up!
I started in Scouting over 6 years ago when my son first became a Tiger Scout. Having never been able to be a Boy Scout, I really didn’t know much about the program. All I knew was that my husband had been a Boy Scout, and that Scouts camp a lot.
I seemingly fell into my roll as a Den Leader on accident. When our son was ready to become a Tiger, I had talked my husband into being his leader. Silly me. Within a couple of months, the leadership of our Pack approached my husband, asking him if he’d be willing to start a Boy Scout Troop in our community. The community had not had an active troop in over 15 years! I saw the boyish glint in his eye, and promptly encouraged him to pursue this opportunity. This left an open position for my son’s den. . . .so, guess who took over? Yep, that would be me.
I was terrified, but, I quickly learned I loved it! I worked with 10 rambunctious, excited young men. Those young men have since all earned their Arrow of Light and are now part of the Boy Scout Troop.
So far in my Scouting “career”, I have been a Den Leader, Pack Secretary, Troop Committee Chairman, Troop Chaplain, Asst. Scoutmaster and Cub Scout Roundtable Commissioner. Not a bad resume so far I’m hoping to, very soon, add Venture Crew Adviser to this list.
While I say I fell into Scouting on accident, I also realize, there are no accidents. God has a plan for each of us, and I truly believe this is part of His plan for me. Being a child at heart, and having great empathy for what our youth face on a day to day basis, I have always felt drawn to work with youth. I feel very privileged to have such a wonderful opportunity.
Through this blog, I hope to share with others my thoughts, ideas and experiences in Scouting. I’m also looking forward to reading others experiences! Blessings to you all, until tomorrow!
