Scoutmaster Minutes

  Submitted by Marcel Chevilet

The Little Boy and The Rattlesnake

The little boy was walking down a path and he came across a rattlesnake. The rattlesnake was getting old. He asked, "Please little boy, can you take me to the top of the mountain? I hope to see the sunset one last time before I die." The little boy answered "No Mr. Rattlesnake. If I pick you up, you'll bite me and I'll die." The rattlesnake said, "No, I promise. I won't bite you. Just please take me up to the mountain." The little boy thought about it and finally picked up that rattlesnake and took it close to his chest and carried it up to the top of the mountain.

They sat there and watched the sunset together. It was so beautiful. Then after sunset the rattlesnake turned to the little boy and asked, "Can I go home now? I am tired, and I am old." The little boy picked up the rattlesnake and again took it to his chest and held it tightly and safely. He came all the way down the mountain holding the snake carefully and took it to his home to give him some food and a place to sleep. The next day the rattlesnake turned to the boy and asked, "Please little boy, will you take me back to my home now? It is time for me to leave this world, and I would like to be at my home now." The little boy felt he had been safe all this time and the snake had kept his word, so he would take it home as asked.

He carefully picked up the snake, took it close to his chest, and carried him back to the woods, to his home to die. Just before he laid the rattlesnake down, the rattlesnake turned and bit him in the chest. The little boy cried out and threw the snake upon the ground. "Mr. Snake, why did you do that? Now I will surely die!" The rattlesnake looked up at him and grinned, "You knew what I was when you picked me up."

Submitted by Shelly Hanks - Cubmaster Pack 325

A Motivational Story with Wisdom -
Two Wolves

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people.
He said, "My son, the battle is between two wolves inside us all.

One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith."

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: "Which wolf wins?"

Submitted by: Jeff Wickham

RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW

By Scott E. Wilson

I was reading some literary works of the founders of the Boy Scout movement and at the end of one of the writings was this statement: “The difference between a boy that is in scouting and one that is not, is that the Boy Scout can do what he does right here, right now.” I thought to myself, what a powerful statement. I then tried to break down that statement so that I could have a better understanding of what he was talking about. What he meant by “What I can do, I can do right here, right now.”

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IN SCOUTING

I CAN DO RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW!

I CAN BUILD A FIRE OF DRY OR WET WOOD

AND THEN COOK A COMPLETE BALANCED MEAL FOR 1 TO 40

PEOPLE OR MORE.

I CAN FASHION A RADIO RECEIVER FROM A COIL OF

COPPER WIRE AND A SIMPLE INSULATOR.

I CAN BUILD A TOWER 40 FEET HIGH, A BRIDGE 60 FEET

LONG OR A LAWN CHAIR FROM TREES AND SOME ROPE.

WHAT I CAN DO, I CAN DO

RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW!

I CAN LEAD, FOLLOW AND TRAIN THE TRAINER,

FOR I HAVE BEEN A FOLLOWER OF THE SCOUT OATH, A LEADER OF

THE SCOUT LAW AND HAVE TRAINED OTHERS THE

VALUE OF BOTH.

I CAN USE THE SUN, MOON, STARS AND NATURE

TO TELL ME MY DIRECTION OF TRAVEL OR THE TIME OF

DAY OR NIGHT.

I CAN TELL YOU ABOUT THE VALUES OF BEING A GOOD CITIZEN IN

YOUR COMMUNITY, NATION AND WORLD.

I CAN TAKE ALL THE EQUIPMENT AND FOOD THAT I

NEED FOR A WEEK, PLACE IT ALL IN A PACK, PUT IT ON MY

BACK AND THEN HIKE SEVERAL MILES

A DAY FOR THAT WEEK.

WHAT I CAN DO, I CAN DO

RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW!

I UNDERSTAND THE COMPLEX NATURE OF OUR ECO

SYSTEM, I CAN UNDERSTAND AND ADHERE TO SUCH

LIMMERICKS AS:

    LEAVES OF THREE LET THEM BE!

    BERRIES OF RED WILL MAKE YOU DEAD!

    AND IF IT’S NOT THE GROUND, DON’T STEP ON IT!

I CAN NAME HUNDREDS OF PLANTS AND ANIMALS

AND WHAT IT TAKES TO HELP THEM SURVIVE.

I CAN PLAY ALL YOUR SPORTS, BECAUSE I UNDERSTAND THE

MEANING OF TEAMWORK. THE DIFFERENCE IS THAT WHEN I AM

DONE WITH THE SPORT I CAN MAKE A WATER BLADDER FROM YOUR

FOOTBALL AND BASKETBALL, I CAN FASHION COOKING UTENSILS

FROM YOUR GOLF CLUBS OR USE YOUR BOWLING PIN AS A HAMMER

TO SET UP MY TENT.

BECAUSE OF MY LEADERSHIP SKILLS THAT I HAVE

LEARNED, I HAVE BEEN THE QUATERBACK, THE

CAPTAIN OF THE TEAM, THE CENTER, THE PITCHER, THE

GOALIE AND THE PEER COACH.

WHAT I CAN DO, I CAN DO

RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW!

I CAN EARN MY OWN WAY TO PAY FOR MY ACTIVITES,

AS I HAVE LEARNED TO MANAGE MY MONEY AND TIME.

I CAN TELL YOU ABOUT RAILROADS, TRUCK DRIVING,

AIRPLANES, HORSEMANSHIP, ARCHITECTURE,

SPACE EXPLORATION, ART, WOOD WORKING AND HOME REPAIRS.

I CAN TEACH YOU HOW TO TAKE CARE OF YOUR PETS,

HOW TO WRITE A SPEECH AND HOW

TO REACT TO A MULTITUDE OF EMERGENCY SITUATIONS.

I AM ABLE TO RAISE YOUR AWARENESS AND UNDERSTANDING

OF THE NEEDS OF THE MENTALLY OR PHYSICALLY

IMPAIRED OR DISABLED.

WHAT I CAN DO, I CAN DO

RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW!

I AM ABLE TO SWIM A MILE, ROW A BOAT, PADDLE A CANOE,

SAIL A BOAT OR OPERATE A MOTOR BOAT WHEN I NEED TO.

I HAVE THE ABILITY AND KNOWLEDGE TO USE A RIFLE,

SHOOT AN ARROW, FIRE A SHOTGUN OR THROW A

TOMAHAWK SAFELY AND HIT MY TARGET.

I CAN TEACH YOU ABOUT SOME THE NATIVE AMERICAN

CUSTOMS AND TRADITIONS AND THEN MAKE A FULL COSTUME

AND HEADRESS WITH THAT KNOWLEDGE.

I CAN WRITE MY STORY IN A JOURNAL OR

WRITE A STORY FOR OUR LOCAL PAPER ABOUT SCOUTING.

I CAN PERFORM SUCH LIFESAVING ACTIONS AS CPR, BLEEDING

CONTROL, SHOCK PREVENTION, TREATMENT FOR HYPOTHERMIA OR

CLEARING THE AIRWAY FOR BREATHING.

AND AFTER ALL THIS I CAN QUOTE LINES FROM MY RELIGIOUS

SCRIPTURES TO HELP SOOTH YOU SOUL, OR PLAY A MUSICAL

INSTRUMENT TO SOOTH YOUR MIND.

WHAT I CAN DO, I CAN DO

RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW!

FOR THESE THINGS I HAVE LEARNED AND TAUGHT WHILE

ON MY TRAIL TO EAGLE SCOUT.

IT IS VERY HARD TO PUT INTO WORDS THE FEELING OF EUPHORIA

THAT COMES OVER YOU WHEN THEY PIN THE EAGLE PIN ON YOUR

CHEST FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME.

YOU NOW UNDERSTAND WHAT IT MEANS TO ACHIEVE A LONG-

RANGE GOAL, TO CLIMB THE HIGHEST PINNACLE OF SCOUTING,

AND THEN REACH DOWN AND HELP OTHERS TO DO THE SAME.

I NOW KNOW WHAT WAS MEANT BY THE STATEMENT:

“WHAT I CAN DO, I CAN DO

RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW!”

Submitted by: Chris Howell Troop 323

Good Timber

by Douglas Malloch

The tree that never had to fight
For sun and sky and air and light,
But stood out in the open plain
And always got its share of rain,
Never became a forest king
But lived and died a scrubby thing.

The man who never had to toil
To gain and farm his patch of soil,
Who never had to win his share
Of sun and sky and light and air,
Never became a manly man
But lived and died as he began.

Good timber does not grow with ease:
The stronger wind, the stronger trees;
The further sky, the greater length;
The more the storm, the more the strength.
By sun and cold, by rain and snow,
In trees and men good timbers grow.

Where thickest lies the forest growth,
We find the patriarchs of both.
And they hold counsel with the stars
Whose broken branches show the scars
Of many winds and much of strife.
This is the common law of life.