Scoutmaster

A Scout is Reverant

A Scout is reverent. A Scout is reverent toward God. He is faithful in his religious duties. He respects the beliefs of others.

Scouting's founders recognized spirituality as an central element of the movement. As scouting expanded throughout  the world so did the way Scouting defined duty to God. Scouting would fail in its mission if it was limited to the adherents of a certain brand of religious thought. If a world brotherhood is to survive it must be based on a mutual respect for differing concepts of God.

Reverence in America has deep roots as does the concepts of political and religious freedom. A continuous, lively and often strident debate of these freedoms has been a part of our national conversation since its founding. Mutual respect for differences is one point on which almost all of us accept though we will argue as to what and who is due what degree of respect.

Tibetan Buddhist master Atisha tells us that, "All dharma (teaching, thinking, beleif) agrees at one point.". I take this to understand that there is a thread of common humanity that inspires reverence, that brings forward the best and highest in us. When we take the hand of a fellow Scout we transcend the constructs culture, background, and religion to something much deeper and broader; that elemental, indefinable common point where we stand as brothers.

A Scout is Clean

A Scout is clean. A Scout keeps his body and mind fit. He chooses the company of those who live by high standards. He helps keep his home and community clean.

Body

In the 14th century the King of France asked the medical faculty at the Sorbonne what was causing a devastating plague called the Black Death. Warm water bathing, they replied, opened the pores making people vulnerable to infection.

Cleanliness was decidedly not next to godliness for the next five centuries.

Over the past 150 years indoor plumbing and regular bathing have evolved into what some call 'hyper cleanliness' - something that may actually weaken our immune systems.

I am not suggesting a radical departure from societal norms but grubbing around in the dirt, building a campfire, sleeping on the ground and going for a few days without a bath or shower isn't going to kill anyone. In fact it may be kind of healthy with the caveat that we keep our hands washed, something any doctor would prescribe.

Mind

Isaac Ray, one of thirteen founders of the American Psychiatric Association,  defined mental hygiene as an art to preserve the mind against incidents and influences which would inhibit or destroy its energy, quality or development.

An energetic mind is full of inquiry and has the ability to resolve philosophical conflicts. It is flexible, resilient and vigorous. The mind is susceptible to injuries that are not as immediately apparent as are those to the body.

Words and attitudes can injure or encourage us with as much (if not more) power as a slap in the face or a pat on the back. We can all recall traumatic, disturbing or unsettling incidents and influences that have caused us real pain. In the same wise we can point to individuals and events that strengthened and encouraged us.

Our attitudes and actions as Scoutmasters have lasting influence. We should aspire to words and attitudes that promote mental and physical strength and resilience.

A Scout is Brave

A Scout is brave. A Scout can face danger although he is afraid. He has the courage to stand for what he thinks is right even if others laugh at him or threaten him.

Chutzpa is a great old Yiddish word that has been defined as a combination of gall, nerve, guts, presumption and arrogance - perhaps not as noble a connotation as that we attach to bravery. It may not be that all brave people have chutzpa but those with chutzpa are brave.

It takes real chutzpah to stand up to society. Our Scouts win popularity or risk ostracism at the shifting standards of their peers. There is no more unforgiving, intense and capricious society than the one we encounter in our teenage years.

It takes chutzpa to be a Scout, to stand out, to acheive in a world that often belittles anyone who dares to explore their own potential.

A Scout is Thrifty

A Scout is thrifty. A Scout works to pay his way and to help others. He saves for the future. He protects and conserves natural resources. He carefully uses time and property.

Scoutmasters need to exercise thrift in ways that are not often talked about -

Thrift in words.
Paradoxically many of the character traits that make a good Scoutmaster can also make a tiresome Scoutmaster. Most of us like to talk and sometimes forget to stop. I have learned to recognize the look Scouts have when they have had enough talk.

Thrift in time.
Scouting is so intriguing and challenging and rewarding that many of us get over committed and over involved. Family, work and sanity can suffer terribly if we are not thrifty with our time.

Thrift in leadership.
Scouts can be over-led. They need to have plenty of latitude to explore the world on their own terms. Attempting to weight every experience with significance and a demand for perfection can grow tiresome to Scouts. Give them plenty of room.

We Scoutmasters are driven, motivated and energetic. It is important that we exercise some thrift so our exuberance supports rather than overwhelms the program.

A Scout is Cheerful

A Scout is cheerful. A Scout looks for the bright side of life. He cheerfully does tasks that come his way. He tries to make others happy.

Cheerfulness is the natural state of most boys. They may be sad, tired, frustrated or afraid or a time but given the opportunity they resume their usual cheerful demeanor.

Opportunity to challenge themselves rather than having challenge thrust upon them.
Opportunity to explore and discover an ever-broadening world.
Opportunity to form and cement friendships with one another.
Opportunity to experience the wide outdoor world in all of its many glories.
Opportunity to sit and think or sometimes just sit.

Most of these opportunities arise naturally in the course of Scouting we have only to see that no one stands in their way.

A Scout is Obedient

A Scout is obedient. A Scout follows the rules of his family, school, and troop. He obeys the laws of his community and country. If he thinks these rules and laws are unfair, he tries to have them changed in an orderly manner rather than disobeying them.

Unquestioning obedience is often the first casualty of adolescence. The most healthy adolescence is likely to be a messy, capricious process. Maturing minds yearning for independence naturally question authority as they search for internal moral integrity.

With the usual exceptions for health and safety it is best to give this search a fair amount of latitude. Scouting's intriguing mix of uniformity, self determination and group dynamics centered on a set of principles provide a rich environment for discovery.

Blind obedience is as dangerous as blind rebellion. Scouts who are allowed to question authority and assert some independence are more likely to form a moral basis for their future than those expected to render unquestioning obedience.

A Scout is Kind

A Scout is kind. A Scout knows there is strength in being gentle. He treats others as he wants to be treated. Without good reason, he does not harm or kill any living thing.

No kind action ever stops with itself. One kind action leads to another. Good example is followed. A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots spring up and make new trees. The greatest work that kindness does to others is that it makes them kind themselves.
- Amelia Erhart

This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness.
- His Holiness the Dalai Lama

Kindness is not usually my first reaction to difficult situations. My first reaction may be disappointment, anger, frustration or some other form of dismay. But if I can maintain an even temper (something that gets easier and easier as I practice) I can choose to respond with kindness.

Buddhism teaches a conceptualization of other people that reminds us we are all part of each other. Admittedly this concept is foreign to the western mind and may not pass theological muster in other systems of belief yet it contains some broad truths that correspond to most.

Buddhism accepts that we have all passed through innumerable cycles of rebirth in innumerable worlds in the the infinite past. In these innumerable cycles we are so closely interrelated to the rest of humankind we have all shared the same family at one time or another. Keeping this in mind that person who is the source of our distress was, in some past life, our mother, father sister or brother and we should look on them as such. We should treat them not as an enemy but as we would treat the closest member of our own family.

This thread of kindness is woven into every system of belief.

The Judeo-Christian imperative that we treat others as we would wish to be treated ourselves echos this concept.

Hinduism declares that "One should never do that to another which one regards as injurious to one’s own self. This, in brief, is the rule of dharma." in the Mahabharata.

Islam's  Muhammad said “None of you [truly] believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.”

Scouting's aspiration to kindness possesses great potential to unite many disparate opinons on a single point of agreement.

A Scout is Courteous

A Scout is courteous. A Scout is polite to everyone regardless of age or position. He knows that using good manners makes it easier for people to get along.

Bad manners are cool, they always have been. It has always been cool (at least to some people) to rebel against society, to challenge expectations, to be an outsider, a nonconformist. (Funny that nonconformists mostly conform to certain manners of dress and attitude.)

But courtesy is not simply good manners, one may have good manners yet be extraordinarily discourteous. Courtesy is a heartfelt expression of respect and consideration. Respect for the different ways we express ourselves and consideration for our innate desire to be understood, to belong.

A Scout is Friendly

A Scout is friendly. A Scout is a friend to all. He is a brother to other Scouts. He offers his friendship to people of all races and nations, and respects them even if their customs are different from his own.

Prejudice is pre-judging an idea, object or person before we have all the facts. Prejudice is usually an attitude toward members of another race, ethnicity, national origin, or system of belief based on second hand information instead of first hand knowledge. First hand knowledge comes from freely extending friendship and ignoring our prejudicial thoughts and attitudes.

I may be well spoken, but if I have no friends, my speech is no more than a noisy gong or a clanging bell.  I may have the gift of inspired preaching; I may have all knowledge and understand all secrets; I may have all the faith needed to move mountains---but if I have no friends, I am nothing.  I may give away everything I have, and even give up my body to be burned ---but if I have no friends, this does me no good.

Friends are patient and kind;  not jealous or conceited or proud; friends are not ill-mannered or selfish or irritable; friends do not keep a record of wrongs; friends are unhappy with evil, but  happy with the truth.  Friends never give up; their faith, hope, and patience never fail. 

Adapted from 1 Corinthians 13

These four should be understood as warm-hearted friends:
One who is a helpmate; guarding and protecting, a refuge in danger, giving more than is asked.
One who is the same in happiness and sorrow; sharing and guarding confidences, remains a friend when things are bad, giving of themselves.
One who gives good counsel; refrains from evil, encourages us to do good, informs us what is unknown of oneself, who is a good example.
One who sympathizes; rejoices in prosperity and not misfortune, will not listen to or spread gossip, speaks well of their friend.

Adapted from the Sigalovada Sutta: The Layman's Code of Discipline (Digha Nikaya, No. 31)

The Unlikely Champion

In 1984 62 year old Cliff Young took 7th place in one of the world's most grueling ultra-marathons; Australia's  543 mile endurance race from Sydney to Melbourne. The winner needs about five days to complete a punishing course usually only attempted by intensely trained world-class athletes half Cliff's age.

Cliff  placed 7th because he displaced a hip during the race. The year before he won.

In 1983 Cliff showed up in overalls and work boots. To most he looked like a spectator.  But then Cliff picked up his race number and headed for the starting lines. Curious athletes questioned Cliff and cautioned him that there was no way he could finish the race.

Cliff knew better. He was raised on a farm too poor to afford horses or tractors. Growing up it was his responsibility, whenever the storms would roll in, round up 2000 sheep spread across 2,000 acres. Sometimes he had to run for two or three days to round up all the sheep. 

Cliff did not really run, he just shuffled along. When the race started Cliff was quickly left behind.

Most participants ran 18 hours a day and slept the remaining 6 hours. On the morning of the second Cliff was still in the race. But not only that; he had been jogging all night.  Asked about his tactics Cliff claimed he would run straight through without sleeping.

By the final night Cliff had passed all of the young, world-class athletes. He was the first competitor to cross the finish line and even set a new course record.

He was genuinely surprised when he received the $10,000 awarded for first place.  Cliff hadn't known about the prize.  He gave all of his winnings to several other runners, an act that endeared him to all of Australia.

In 1997, aged 76, Cliff attempted to raise money for homeless children by running around Australia's border.  He completed 4051 miles before he was forced to stop when his single crew member became ill. Cliff Young died in 2003 at age 81.

At least three champions of the Sydney to Melbourne Marathon have won using the energy saving "Young Shuffle". Competitors don't sleep during the race anymore, just like Cliff; the unlikely champion.

One can imagine Cliff resenting the hard work he did rounding up  sheep, but instead he applied what he had learned and changed the way people do things. While we may never imitate Cliff's accomplishments it may be that, like Cliff, some unlikely experience will have prepared us to achieve in some unlikely manner.