Life After The "double half hitch ".

[Eamonn 61]

Of course some of the skills we spend many happy hours teaching to the young people we serve will once they are no longer active in Scouting or outdoor activities no longer seem very important.

Some will be replaced with new ideas, new equipment or the skill will just no longer be needed.

I'm not exactly sure what a "double half hitch" is? But if it's in the book I'm happy to learn it and hopefully become skilled enough to be able to teach it.

Looking back on the half century I have spent on the planet, it seems a lot of the stuff that was at one time important or seemed important at some time, now seems of little consequence.

All the time I spent learning to play cricket and rugby? Gone!! I haven't picked up a cricket or rugby ball in over 20 years.

Venn Diagrams? Oh the happy hours spent on intersections, unions, and other operations on sets. 30 years have past and as far as I know Venn has never been of any use.

As an alter boy I had to know the Mass in Latin. Now I can follow along in English (OK!!American English!!)

I'm not sad that I spent time learning all this stuff. Some of it was fun, none of it did me any harm.

How many High School athletes will still be playing what ever game they played when they have a wife, a couple of kids and a mortgage?

How many saxophones that once graced the field are stored in the attic? Never to see the light of day.

Maybe? Just maybe people outside of Scouting might think that the "double half hitch " is a little silly.

But learning the "double half hitch " and how to use it is a tool that we use. I don't know if being able to tie it or some of the other knots will ever make a huge difference in anyones life?

Maybe like me and the Venn Diagrams, it will just be something I once knew and never used.

I'm not sure if Dr Foreshaw, my old Math master knew that I'd never use it? I do remember at the time that he seemed very passionate about it.

But thinking about it my English Masters seemed very passionate about Dickens, Shakespeare and Chaucer.

 

For out of the old fieldes, as men saithe,

Cometh al this new corne fro yere to yere;

And out of old bookes, in good faithe,

Cometh al this new science that men lere.

The Assembly of Fowles. Line 22.

Ea

 

 

[RangerT 10]

Eamonn, my god man you are only 50 and you are already writing your epitaph? This is the time in your life to start living your life with your spouse, going to all those places you always talked about and enjoy the good life. Scouting like all your other experiences now become happy memories to look back on. Life keeps on going and so must we. I just turned 50 and next month two of my early crew members will be taking over as advisors while I become the CC/COR for the crew. Part of me is dreading it and another part rejoicing in the fact that there will be no more long backpacking treks or whitewater trips worrying about the youth and whether or not I will make those last ten miles, and yet I know I will miss them too.

 

Now is the time for me and the wife to live our dreams, our last boy is almost finished with college and can take care of himself just fine. The crew gave me the unofficial title of Advisor Emeritus with an embroidered cap and jacket and told me that they hoped I would still go on a few trips a year with them. If that wasn't enough to bring a tear to my eye our crew photographer made a montage of crew photos from the last five years and created this huge burlwood framed piece of art. Like I have said before scouters never really leave scouting do we. Eamonn I hope your spouse and you are doing well. YIS

[Gunny2862 11]

Eamonn,

Ditto what RangerT said.

 

Now is the time to revel in your accomplishments and realize that you can now advise even more - whether from the trail or at the roundtable or especially in Scoutmaster/ Asst. SM coffee clatches when they need a more experienced point of view than they might have gained yet.