Scoutmaster's Minute
Susan Ganther (susan@EMAIL.UNC.EDU)
Mon, 13 Nov 1995 11:42:08 -0500
I was deliberating about this story after our Webelos leader asked to
have each visiting parent prepare to tell a story from their own life
when it is their turn to be the guest at the Webelos meeting. I decided
it is more appropriate for Scouts than for Webelos, who do not yet have
responsibility for leadership of their unit.
I was climbing in the Sierras with a group and we were winding our way up
a very steep canyon as we approached a peak. I was near the rear of the
line when one of the climbers above called down to us that he had pulled
a large boulder loose and he was going to have to drop it, but would try
to hold it long enough for us to prepare ourselves. Given the steep and
narrow nature of the canyon, there was nowhere for us to go to get out of
the path the boulder must follow on it's way down, so all we could do to
prepare ourselves was to make peace with our maker, and hope it missed.
When he dropped the boulder, which was about 4 or 5 feet in diameter, it
carromed off the walls of the canyon on first one side and then the other
as it landed between each of us with each crashing bounce. It was one of
those moments in life that definately gets your attention. It seemed like
it should be a profound, dare I say earthshaking experience :-) So I
pondered what might be the moral of this story and briefly thought
that the moral might be that it is better to lead than to follow, since
the leader will not get any rocks dropped on him. But then I thought
about what it would have been like to have been that man holding the
boulder that must have seemed like the weight of the world. Knowing that
you have to drop it, and that one or more of the people following might
be crushed as a result.
It is like that every time you take on a leadership role. There may not
be any loose boulders in your future, but you must always be aware that
when you are in the lead, the consequences of your actions affect those
who follow you, even when you are faced with decisions that are
unavoidable, like dropping that boulder, you must be prepared to live
with the results. If you have done everything that you can to be prepared
to lead, and you have done your best to do everything that is required of
your leadership position, then you should be able to answer that question
that each Scout must ask and guiltless sleep... even if you have had to
drop the rock.
YiS, Susan
Terry Howerton Sakima Group, Inc. SCOUTER Magazine Kansas City |
