Re: Another Issue
Jere Long (JereLong@AOL.COM)
Sat, 28 Jan 1995 17:40:59 -0500
Dan O'Canna makes some excellent points in his message on this subject.
Thanks, Dan, for your words. Here are mine:
There are many ways in which I can travel from here, in Fort Worth, to
Washington, DC. I can go to DFW airport and fly to Dulles airport. As I
look out the window of the aircraft, I can see the ground: mountains, rivers,
fields of farm crops, and cities and towns. In about 3 hours I can land and
take a taxi into the city. OR, I can get in my car and drive there. As I
travel across Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee and Virginia, I can see faces of the
people who live there. I can stop and talk with them and find out who they
are. I can visit battlefields of the Civil War and learn of our rich
heritage. Visit the homes of Washington and Jefferson and Madison. And when
I get to DC, I will know and understand something of who I am, who they are,
and what my country.
MY POINT IS THIS: I can rush through life and never know or appreciate the
things which I experience; I can take 3 hours to GET THERE!! Or I can take
my time, still arriving, and know what my life means to me and other people.
My friend (and fellow Scouter) Leon Griffin puts it better than anyone I
know: IT'S NOT THE DESTINATION, IT'S THE JOURNEY!
And advancement to the rank of Eagle is the same...younger Scouts cannot, by
virtue of their physical, mental and emotional development, understand the
point of that which we try to teach them. It takes some time and development
for a boy to reach that point. The message of Scouting is, at once, simple
and complex. We hope that by the time the leave Scouting, they will have
learned something about responsibility, leadership, duty.
I, too, have seen 12 year old Eagles who cannot cook a meal (even at home on
the stove). I have seen older Eagle Scouts who could not do much better.
Unfortunately, I have seen more of the 12 year olds.
Our job as adult leaders, especially as Scoutmasters, is to teach leadership.
WE DO A DISSERVICE TO ANY BOY FOR WHOM WE FACILITATE A RUSH TO THE
DESTINATION, AND WHO NEVER EXPERIENCES THE JOURNEY.
YIS,
Jere Long,
ASM Troop 326,
Advisor Post 326,
Longhorn Council, TX
Terry Howerton Sakima Group, Inc. SCOUTER Magazine Kansas City |
