Scoutmaster Minute -- 29 March 2022

Let us consider the Scout Uniform.  Baden-Powell said, "the uniform makes for brotherhood, since when universally adopted it covers up all differences of class and country."  The uniform is one of the Eight Methods of Scouting:  "The uniform makes the Scout troop visible as a force for good and creates a positive youth image in the community. Scouting is an action program, and wearing the uniform is an action that shows each Scout's commitment to the aims and purposes of Scouting. The uniform gives the Scout identity in a world brotherhood of youth who believe in the same ideals. The uniform is practical attire for Scout activities and provides a way for Scouts to wear the badges that show what they have accomplished."  Uniforms are important parts of sports and occupations.  If you are playing a sport and show up with a partial uniform, your coach may or may not let you take the field and compete.  Occupations have uniforms as well.  Beyond the dictated dress of the military, police, and fire fighters, other jobs have a standard of dress commensurate with professional expectations and safety requirements.  Doctors and nurses wear lab coats and scrubs because they shield them from biohazards and are easily laundered.  Construction workers wear hardhats and steel-toe boots to protect them from occupational hazards.  Some white-collar jobs demand suits and ties to adhere to a sense of professionalism.  As you don your Scout uniform for a meeting or event, I ask you to consider your commitment to looking professional and being safe.  Is your uniform complete?  Is it clean and relatively free of wrinkles, or does it look like it was balled up on the floor of your room since the previous meeting?  Do you have the right footwear on to perform the planned activities, be it a hike or an end-of-meeting game?  Does your appearance contribute to the reputation of the Troop or does it deter?  Set high standards for yourself and do your best to meet them.

A Scout is Loyal.

 

 

 

 

Scoutmaster's Minute -- 15 March 2022

I enjoy a good meme as much as the next person.  This weekend I saw one that made me stop and think. It said, "Kindness is loaning someone your strength rather than reminding them of their weakness."  I find this very compelling.  When we do our daily Good Turn, do we do it with graciousness, or do we do it in a way that reminds the other person that they need help?  As I get older, I think about this, particularly as both my memory and strength fail me.  As someone that sometimes needs help, I do not need the helper to remind me of my age – I am aware of it as I have lived every day of it.  I do not need a reminder of my inability to do something – the pain that causes me to need help is ever present. 

How refreshing it is to be the recipient of true kindness, delivered in a way as to not highlight the fact that my best days are behind me.  I ask each of you, do not look at your daily Good Turn as a quota, but as an opportunity to give to others.  Forgo "virtue signaling" and find humility, knowing the assistance you are able to give now may be required from you when you get older.  Give in a way that makes all parties feel better for the interaction rather than one party feeling bad about the dependence.

A Scout is Helpful, and a Scout is Kind.

Scoutmaster Minute, 8 March 2022

For this week's Scoutmaster Minute, I relay an article from last week's New York Post:

"A New York City good Samaritan proved that chivalry isn't dead after she discovered a wallet containing thousands of dollars in Times Square — and got it back to its rightful owner.  The noble deed occurred Wednesday morning while Honduras native Eduardo Martinez was walking through the tourist-inundated area to get to work.  During his commute, the man reportedly dropped his wallet, which contained $4,000 cash along with standard wallet items, near Broadway and 49th Street.  Upon realizing what had transpired, the panicked man returned to the crowded area, whereupon he was approached by two police officers. They explained that they'd been given a wallet by an unnamed woman who had been commuting to work at the same time as Martinez.  After verifying his identification, the cops reunited the relieved fellow with his money pouch, which, incredibly, still had all the contents inside, including the four grand.  Martinez said in Spanish that he's grateful to the cops and the woman who returned it to him, adding that their act of kindness proves that there are still honest people in the world."

Many people, given the opportunity for easy cash, would have made the wrong decision and kept the money, possibly tossing the wallet in the nearest garbage receptacle.  Others would have gone ever farther, emptying Martinez's checking account through his debit card, maxing out his credit card, and maybe even using his Personal Identifiable Information on his driver's license to open up fraudulent accounts to further capitalize from his misfortune.  Yet, here is an anonymous woman who took steps to get the wallet and contents back to the owner, without looking for a reward or taking any portion of the contents for herself.  In the same scenario, with $4000 cash in hand, can you say that you would do the same?  I pray the answer is yes.

Living a life of principles keeps us on the straight and narrow.  The values that you pledge to when you recite the Scout Oath and Law are not just a direction for those aged 10 to 18.  These are life principles -- they keep on what is sometimes the hard right when we are presented with the easy wrong.  These principles define us and this is why our community can rely upon us to do the right thing, even when no one is watching.

A Scout is Trustworthy.