April 1st and an optimistic Scout
Jerry Hanning (jerryh@RCONNECT.COM)
Tue, 30 Mar 1999 22:21:00 -0600
Greetings to the list!
A little background before my question...
I have a Scout who will be finishing his last requirements for
First Class March 31st (except for the BOR). Well, he _might_
finish. He's an active Scout and not afraid to work.
Unfortunately, due to extenuating circumstances, he's in a mad
rush to get everything done. No need to go into why this
happened, just that it did.
I talked with him tonight and he assured me that he would be
done and he would come over to my house with the "proof", as he
put it. I explained that if he didn't, he'd have more
requirements to get signed off. He replied "Well, I guess I
just have to make sure that I get it done tomorrow". I laughed
a little bit at that and then he added, "And if I don't, it's
just that much more that I get to do". We laughed about the
whole thing, and he said he needed to get to bed because his
brother took on a paper route and he gets up half an hour
earlier to finish his so he can help his brother learn his route.
I thought about his comments and decided I wanted to share his
view on the whole subject of this deadline. He's not thinking
about an extension for any reason. He's not asking for any kind
of special treatment to advance. He understands the deadline and
knows that I will not cut him any slack, even if I thought I
could. Think about his last comment, "And if I don't, it's just
that much more that I GET to do". His line of thinking is that
he GETS to do more, not HAS to do more. The more I think about
what he said and how he said it, the more I realize that I
really learned something from this young man of twelve years.
The deadline is not an obstacle for him, it's a challenge that
he's determined to meet. If he doesn't meet it, he GETS to do
more; has even more of a reason to be active and finish what he
started. I think there's a lesson in there somewhere in his bit
of wisdom. Why do so many people look for the negative in so
many things? Questions like: How do I get around doing this?
Why do I have to do that? Can I avoid the other thing and get
away with it? Statements like: Not enough time. Get it in
writing so it's legally binding. I should get special treatment
because of such and such.
OK, now for my question. It seems that all of the discussion
has been about getting Eagle requirements done before the
deadline and when the BOR can be done. As I understand it,
requirements before April 1st, and the BOR can be held after
that. No problem. But, does the same apply for the other ranks?
I think it would, but I can't remember if I ever saw this
particular question addressed. Not to worry, though. Even if
I'm interpreting this wrong, there's a twelve year old boy,
oops, young man, out there that is looking for his next
challenge, not his next excuse.
Thanx for any insight.
Jerry Hanning
Scoutmaster, Troop 57
Fairmont MN
Why would I make the same mistake twice when there are so many
to choose from?
