At our first troop meeting of the year, I shared some thoughts on goals with our scouts. I suppose I was inspired by the usual New Year-esque ritual of setting resolutions for the coming year related to exercise, healthy eating, etc. (which I have resolved to do better myself!). We talked a bit about the importance of having goals, and in particular – not setting our goals too low. I stumbled on a great quote related to this:
“When you reach for the stars, you might not get one, but you won’t come up with a handful of mud either.” – Leo Burnett
This got me thinking about one of our core tenants – the Scout Law. As simple as those 12 points may seem, there’s really a lot in there to unpack and strive for in life. Thinking about this, though, got me thinking about the most simple – and important – word in the Scout Law. Of course, I had to ask our scouts what they thought the most important word is, which was kind of a trick question. Lots of ideas came out – trustworthy, brave, helpful, etc. I surely burst their collective bubbles when I shared that the most important word is actually – “is.” The Scout Law is a set of ideals, but it is not aspirational…it is who we are as scouts and scouters. Is it easy to “be” those 12 things? No – but it is our charge to embody them throughout life, something that I try to inspire within our scouts every time I am with them (and even sometimes when I am not).
Does this mean Yoda was a Boy Scout? Not sure about that, but his philosophy certainly motivates me at 5:30am each day when my alarm goes off to exercise. 🙂